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EFFECTIVE    WORKERS 
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DAVID    LIVINGSTONE 


David  Livingstone 


Reproduced  from  Thomas  Hughes'  "David  Livingstone' 
By  permission  of  Macmillan  &  Co. 


EFFECTIVE    WORKERS 
IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 


BY 


w.  F.  Mcdowell,  d.d.,     r.  p.  mackay,  d.d., 

W.  F.  OLDHAM,  D.D.,     C.  C.  CREEGAN,  D.D., 
J.  D.  DAVIS,  D.D. 


NEW  YORK 

STUDENT  VOLUNTEER   MOVEMENT 

FOR  FOREIGN   MISSIONS 

1903 


COPYRIGHT,    1902,    BY 

STUDENT   VOLUNTEER   MOVEMENT 
FOR  FOREIGN  MISSIONS 


PREFATORY  NOTE 

This  text-book  is  the  twenty-fourth  in  the  series 
published  by  the  Student  Volunteer  Movement  for 
Foreign  Missions  for  the  use  of  mission  study  classes. 
Eight  years'  experience  in  this  work  has  proven  that 
biographies  constitute  a  most  alluring  thread,  attract- 
ing the  reader  onward,  by  the  strong  interest  that 
always  attaches  to  virile  and  effective  living,  through 
the  maze  of  acts  and  scenes  constituting  the  mission- 
ary's life  and  environment. 

The  subjects  chosen  for  treatment  in  this  volume 
are  without  exception  persons  whose  lives  have  made 
their  deep  impression  upon  the  peoples  among  whom 
they  labored.  Excepting  that  of  Livingstone,  the 
sketches  are  written  by  men  who  were  intimately  asso- 
ciated with  the  missionaries  whose  labors  they  por- 
tray, and  they  consequently  have  the  value  of  personal 
testimony.  Over  against  this  great  advantage,  pos- 
sessed by  the  writers,  must  be  placed  the  serious  dis- 
advantage of  space  limitations.  The  story  of  great 
lives  cannot  be  successfully  compressed  within  the 
limits  of  a  few  pages.  To  offset  this  weakness  a  brief 
list  of  the  best  sources  of  additional  information  is 
given,  which  the  reader  is  expected  to  use  in  order  to 


VI  PREFATORY    NOTE 

fill  out  and  give  color  to  these  life  studies.  The  recent 
deaths  of  three  of  the  workers  account  for  the  dearth 
of  suggested  material ;  but  as  time  passes  and  their 
achievements  are  recorded,  this  difficulty  will  disap- 
pear. In  case  no  fuller  biographies  are  accessible,  the 
reader  can  at  least  derive  from  omnipresent  encyclo- 
paedias a  fair  knowledge  of  the  environment  of  these 
dynamic  workers. 


CONTENTS 


Daviu  Livingstone,  1813-1873 

Rev.  William   F.  McDowell,  D.D.         ...  1 

George  Leslie  Mackay,  D.D.,  1844- 1901 

Secretary  R.  P.  Mackay,  D.D 35 

Isabella  Thoburn,  1840-1901 

Rev.  W.  F.  Oldham,  D.D 83 

Cyrus  Hamlin,  D.D..  LL.D.,  1811-1900 

Secretary  C.  C.  Creegan,  D.D II5 

Joseph  Hardy  Neesima,  LL.D.,  1843-1890 

Rev.  Jerome  D.  Davis,  D.D.         ....         153 

Bibliography 187 

Analytical  Index 189 


DAVID   LIVINGSTONE 

"  The  End  of  the  Exploration  is  the  Beginning  of  the 

Enterprise  " 

1813-1873 

BY    REV.    WILLIAM    F.    MC  DOWELL,    D.D. 

David  Livingstone  is  a  name  to  conjure  with.  This 
Scotch  physician  appeals  to  connoisseurs  in  manUness. 
Blaikie,  his  principal  biographer,  and  Thomas  Hughes, 
author  of  the  best  brief  biography  of  Livingstone,  are 
both  known  as  lovers  of  true  manliness.  Mr.  Hughes 
writes  the  "  Manliness  of  Christ,"  the  "  Tom  Brown  " 
books,  and  "  Livingstone  "  for  the  "  Men  of  Action  " 
series,  studying  in  each  case  a  different  personality, 
but  not  a  different  theme. 

Ancestors.  —  i .  His  Forefathers.  —  His  own  reti- 
cence is  embarrassing.  "  My  own  inclination  would 
lead  me  to  say  as  little  as  possible  about  myself." 
What  he  tells  and  what  he  conceals  are  alike  inter- 
esting. He  records  two  items  about  his  ancestors: 
"  My  great-grandfather  fell  at  the  battle  of  Culloden, 
fighting  for  the  old  line  of  kings,  and  my  grand- 
father was  a  small  farmer  in  Ulva,  where  my  father 
was  born."  And  this :  "  The  only  point  of  the  family 
tradition  that  I  feel  proud  of  is  this.  —  One  of  these 
poor  islanders,  one  of  my  ancestors,  when  he  was  on 

3 


4  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

his  deathbed,  called  his  children  around  him  and  said: 
'  Now,  lads,  I  have  looked  all  through  our  history  as 
far  back  as  I  can  find  it,  and  I  have  never  found 
a  dishonest  man  in  all  the  line,  and  I  want  you  to 
understand  you  inherit  good  blood.  You  have  no  ex- 
cuse for  wrongdoing.  Be  honest.'  "  When  honors 
were  finally  laid  in  profusion  at  Livingstone's  feet  he 
wrote  affectionately  of  "  his  own  people,  the  honest 
poor." 

2.  Parents.  —  His  father  was  Neil  Livingstone  and 
his  mother  was  Agnes  Hunter,  daughter  of  David 
Hunter,  a  tailor.  This  David  was  a  great  reader  and 
had  among  his  books  "  Travels  among  the  Hotten- 
tots," by  the  Rev.  J.  Campbell,  a  South  African  mis- 
sionary. This  book  appealed  strongly  to  both  Neil 
Livingstone  and  his  growing  son.  It  may  have  been 
one  of  the  influences  that  gave  bent  to  the  lad's  life, 
like  the  picture  of  the  sailing  ship  in  another  high- 
land home.  Neil  Livingstone  was  a  traveling  tea  mer- 
chant, doing  a  small  business.  Agnes  Hunter  was  a 
thrifty  housewife,  one  of  the  women  of  whom  great 
sons  are  born.  Of  such  parentage  David  Livingstone 
was  born  March  19,  1813,  at  Blantyre,  Scotland. 

His  Early  Life.  —  i.  Before  he  zvas  fen  he  had 
explored  his  native  place  and  had  begun  to  collect 
flowers  and  shells.  "  He  had  gained  a  prize  for  re- 
peating the  whole  119th  Psalm  'with  only  five 
hitches.'  "  He  had  climbed  in  the  ruins  of  Bothwell 
castle  to  a  higher  point  than  any  other  boy  and  had 
carved  his  name  there. 

2.  At  the  age  of  ten  he  went  to  zvork  in  the  cotton 
mills.  Out  of  his  first  week's  wages  he  saved  enough 
to  buy  Ruddiman's  "  Rudiments."    The  employers  pro- 


DAVID   LIVINGSTONE 


vided  a  schoolmaster  to  give  evening  instruction. 
When  Livingstone  could  have  the  master's  assistance 
he  took  it,  when  he  could  not  get  it  he  toiled  on  alone. 
Thus  he  mastered  his  Latin.  He  was  not  brighter 
than  other  boys.  He  was  not  precocious  in  anything 
save  determination.  Early  his  scientific  tastes  revealed 
themselves.  While  he  had  the  passion  for  reading  he 
had  equally  the  passion  for  exploration  and  for  such 
sports  as  swimming  and  fishing.  "  My  reading  in 
the  factory,"  he  says,  "was  carried  on  by  placing  the 
book  on  a  portion  of  the  spinning  jenny,  so  that  I 
could  catch  sentence  after  sentence  as  I  passed  at  my 
work.  I  thus  kept  a  pretty  constant  study,  undisturbed 
by  the  roar  of  machinery.  To  this  I  owe  the  power 
of  completely  abstracting  my  mind,  so  as  to  read  and 
write  with  perfect  comfort  amidst  the  play  of  children 
and  song  of  savages."  At  nineteen  he  was  promoted 
in  the  factory. 

3.  His  parents  took  great  pains  to  instil  the  doctrines 
of  Christianity  into  his  mind,  and  he  had  no  diffi- 
culty with  the  truth  of  free  salvation  through  the 
atonement  of  the  Savior.  He  had,  however,  a  brief 
period  of  rebellion  against  certain  religious  reading. 
Shortly  after  twenty,  it  would  seem  he  "  lighted  upon 
the  admirable  works  of  Dr.  Thomas  Dick,  '  The  Phi- 
losophy of  Religion  '  and  '  The  Philosophy  of  a  Future 
State,'  and  was  gratified  to  find  that  he  had  enforced 
his  own  conviction  that  religion  and  science  are  friendly 
to  one  another."  This  proved  actually  the  time  of  his 
conversion. 

Contemporary  Events.  —  Students  of  history  will 
have  no  difficulty  in  recalling  the  historical  conditions 
existing  in  181 3.    Six  years  earlier  England  had  abol- 


O  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

ished  the  slave  trade.  That  very  year  the  alUes  en- 
tered Paris,  and  two  years  later  Waterloo  came.  The 
"  Consecrated  Cobbler  "  had  awakened  the  Churches 
of  England  to  their  missionary  duty,  and  there  were 
a  dozen  societies,  then  in  their  youth,  eager  to  spread 
the  gospel  in  foreign  lands.  The  American  Board 
and  the  American  Baptist  Missionary  Society  were 
in  their  infancy  when  Livingstone  was  born.  The 
Wesleyan  Missionary  Society  was  organized  in  1812, 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Missionary  Society  in  1819. 
The  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  was  eleven 
years  old,  the  American  Bible  Society  not  in  existence 
until  1816.  It  was  the  day  of  exploration  and  inquiry, 
the  day  in  which  the  modern  missionary  movement 
began.  Into  the  Kingdom  at  such  a  time  and  for  such 
a  time  Livingstone  came. 

Influences  Leading  Him  to  the  Mission  Field. 
—  Almost  simultaneously  with  his  conversion  one  Dea- 
con Neil  established  a  missionary  society  in  the  vil- 
lage. Books  were  gathered  and  addresses  were  given. 
The  lives  of  heroic  men  touched  this  susceptible  youth. 
He  became  acquainted  with  missionary  biography.  The 
"  Life  of  Henry  Martyn "  stirred  his  blood.  The 
story  of  Charles  Giitzlaff,  medical  missionary  to  China, 
was  as  a  trumpet  call.  Soon  thereafter  came  his  con- 
version, bringing  peace  and  power  and  this  missionary 
influence.  Students  will  pause  over  the  statement 
that  at  twenty  he  had  resolved  to  devote  to  the  mis- 
sionary cause  all  that  he  could  earn  and  save.  Then 
Gutzlaff  appealed  to  the  churches  of  Great  Britain  and 
America  for  aid  in  behalf  of  China,  and  Livingstone 
offered  not  his  earnings,  but  his  life.  "  It  is  my  de- 
sire," he  said,  "  to  show  my  attachment  to  the  cause 


DAVID   LIVINGSTONE  7 

of  Him  who  died  for  me  by  devoting  my  life  to  His 
service  " ;  and  "  from  this  time  my  efforts  were  con- 
stantly devoted  toward  this  object  without  any  fluc- 
tuation." This  last  sentence  shows  influence  of  a 
faithful  Sunday-school  teacher  who  had  said  to  him, 
"  Now,  lad,  make  religion  the  everyday  business  of 
your  life,  and  not  a  thing  of  fits  and  starts." 

Preparation  and  Choice  of  Field.  —  i.  Living- 
stone did  not  propose  to  go  as  a  missionary  without 
preparation.  He  went  on  with  his  studies  for  six  or 
seven  years  from  the  date  of  the  resolution  quoted 
above.  When  at  last  he  went,  it  was  with  the  strength 
and  training  of  a  man.  He  was  accepted  by  the 
London  Missionary  Society,  whose  object  —  "to  send 
neither  Episcopacy  nor  Presbyterianism  nor  Independ- 
ency, but  the  gospel  of  Christ  to  the  heathen  "  —  ex- 
actly agreed  with  his  ideas.  He  studied  theology,  the 
art  of  preaching  and  the  science  of  medicine.  His 
first  attempts  at  preaching  were  not  very  successful. 
Indeed,  they  never  amounted  to  much,  but  he  did  be- 
come a  successful  religious  teacher.  His  medical 
studies  and  "  walking  of  the  hospitals  "  were  more 
to  his  taste.  In  1840  he  was  ordained  and  received 
his  medical  diploma.  Speaking  of  the  latter,  he  said, 
"  With  unfeigned  delight  I  became  a  member  of  a 
profession  which  with  unwearied  energy  pursues  from 
age  to  age  its  endeavors  to  lessen  human  woe." 

2.  Influences  Leading  Him  to  Africa.  —  He  wanted 
to  go  as  a  medical  missionary  to  China,  but  the  Opium 
War  shut  him  out.  He  grew  weary  of  waiting  but 
never  faltered  in  his  purpose.  One  day  Robert  Moffat 
came  home  to  plead  for  the  South  African  Mission. 
He  told  Livingstone  that  he  had  "  sometimes  seen  in 


8  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

the  morning  sun  the  smoke  of  a  thousand  villages 
where  no  missionary  had  ever  been  " ;  that  settled  the 
question  for  Livingstone.  It  was  God's  hand  leading 
him  into  the  Dark  Continent. 

Departure  and  Arrival  in  Africa.  —  i.  Depar- 
ture. —  On  the  evening  of  November  i6,  1840,  he  went 
home  to  visit  for  one  night  his  parents.  He  pro- 
posed to  sit  up  all  night.  His  father  had  the  heart 
and  soul  of  a  missionary.  He  was  the  kind  of  man 
portrayed  in  "  The  Cotter's  Saturday  Night."  Far 
into  the  night  they  talked  of  the  prospects  of  Christian 
missions.  They  talked  of  the  coming  day  when  rich 
and  great  men  would  think  it  an  honor  to  support 
whole  stations  of  missionaries,  instead  of  spending 
their  money  on  hounds  and  horses.  At  five  the  next 
morning  they  had  breakfast,  and  then  gathered  around 
the  family  altar  for  prayers.  David  read  the  121st 
and  135th  Psalms  and  prayed.  It  is  a  scene  for  an 
artist.  Father  and  son  walked  to  Glasgow.  "  On  the 
Broomiclaw  they  parted,  and  never  met  again  on 
earth."  The  father  set  his  face  toward  home ;  the 
great  son  resolutely  starting  toward  the  "  smoke  of  the 
thousand  villages." 

2.  December  8,  1840,  he  sailed  for  Cape  Town, 
at  the  southern  extremity  of  Africa.  It  is  an  historic 
date  in  the  history  of  Africa  and  in  the  history  of 
the  Christian  Church.  When  he  arrived  at  the  Cape, 
he  found  Dr.  Philip,  acting  agent  for  the  London 
Missionary  Society,  desirous  of  returning  home  for  a 
vacation  and  anxious  to  find  some  one  willing  to  take 
his  place  as  minister  to  the  congregation  at  Cape  Town. 
The  place,  with  good  compensation,  was  offered  to 
Livingstone.     Then  he  remembered  that  Moffat  had 


DAVID   LIVINGSTONE  9 

said  to  him,  "  You  will  do  for  Africa,  if  you  do  not 
go  to  an  old  station  but  push  on  to  the  vast  unoc- 
cupied districts  to  the  north."  He  declined  the  easier 
position  and  pushed  on  toward  Dr.  Moffat's  station  at 
Kuruman,  700  miles  to  the  north.  These  700  miles 
formed  the  crust  of  heathenism  as  dense  as  night. 

3.  First  Experiences  and  Impressions.  —  On  into  it 
this  fearless  man  journeyed.  He  practiced  medicine 
as  he  went.  The  people  believed  him  to  be  a  wizard. 
They  thought  him  able  to  raise  the  dead.  The  sick  and 
the  curious  crowded  about  his  wagon,  but  not  an  article 
was  stolen.  One  day  the  chief  of  a  savage  tribe 
said :  "  I  wish  you  would  change  my  heart.  Give 
me  medicine  to  change  it,  for  it  is  proud,  proud  and 
angry,  angry  always."  The  physician  and  the  scien- 
tist, the  minister  and  the  reformer,  are  all  combined 
in  this  one  man.  He  heals  the  sick;  he  notes  the 
scenery,  classifying  the  plants,  birds,  and  beasts,  not- 
ing that  forty-three  fruits  and  thirty-two  edible  roots 
grow  wild  in  a  certain  district;  he  gathers  specimens 
for  a  London  college ;  he  rescues  a  little  girl  about  to 
be  sold  into  slavery ;  he  rejoices  that  God  had  con- 
ferred upon  him  the  privilege  and  honor  of  being 
the  first  messenger  of  mercy  that  ever  trod  those  re- 
gions. He  writes  home :  "  This  is  the  country  for  a 
medical  man,  but  he  must  leave  fees  out  of  the  ques- 
tion. These  people  are  excellent  patients,  too.  There 
is  no  wincing;  everything  prescribed  is  done  instanter. 
Their  only  failing  is  that  they  get  tired  of  along  course, 
but  in  any  operation  even  the  women  sit  unmoved.  I 
have  been  astonished  again  and  again  at  their  calm- 
ness. In  cutting  out  a  tumor  an  inch  in  diameter  they 
sit  and  talk  as  if  they  felt  nothing.    '  A  man  like  me/ 


10  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

they  say,  '  never  cries.  It  is  children  that  cry.'  And 
it  is  a  fact  that  the  men  never  cry ;  but  when  the  Spirit 
of  God  works  on  their  minds  they  cry  most  piteously, 
trying  to  hide  their  heads  in  their  karosses,  and  when 
they  find  that  won't  do  they  rush  out  of  church  and  run 
with  all  their  might,  crying  as  if  the  hand  of  death 
were  behind  them."  Meantime  visions  of  planting  col- 
onies here  float  before  him.  He  explores  for  Jesus 
Christ.  He  covers  his  letters  with  maps  of  the  coun- 
try. Every  new  tract  is  a  new  field  for  the  gospel. 
He  studies  the  African  fever,  the  tsetse  fly,  and  dreams 
of  the  lake.  The  details  of  these  years  cannot  be  given. 
4.  During  this  time  occurred  the  adventure  with  the 
lion,  of  which  adventure  he  writes  that  "  he  meant 
to  have  kept  it  to  tell  his  children  in  his  old  age."  It 
was  during  his  second  missionary  year.  He  says  of  it : 
"  He  rushed  from  the  bushes  and  bit  me  on  the  arm, 
breaking  the  bone.  I  hope  I  shall  never  forget  God's 
mercy.  It  will  be  well  before  this  letter  reaches  you. 
Do  not  mention  it  to  anyone.  I  do  not  like  to  be 
talked  about."  He  never  voluntarily  referred  to  it. 
But  of  the  wound  then  received  Sir  Bartle  Frere  writes 
in  an  obituary  notice  before  the  Royal  Geographical 
Society :  "  For  thirty  years  afterward  all  adventures 
and  exposures  and  hardships  were  undertaken  with 
an  arm  so  maimed  that  it  was  painful  to  raise  a  fowl- 
ing-piece to  his  shoulder."  In  putting  up  a  new  mis- 
sion station  he  broke  it  over  again  but  barely  men- 
tioned the  fact.  Thirty  years  afterward,  —  after  his 
remains  had  been  carried  one  thousand  miles  to  the 
coast  by  faithful  African  followers,  and  thence  to  Eng- 
land to  be  deposited  in  Westminster  Abbey  among  the 
illustrious  dead,  —  a  company  of  royal  surgeons  identi- 


DAVID   LIVINGSTONE  II 

fied  the  body  by  the  scar  and  compound  fracture  made 
by  the  Hon's  teeth. 

Marriage  and  Work  at  Chonuane,  —  i.  Four 
years  he  toiled  on  alone,  putting  aside  all  thoughts  of 
matrimony.  At  last,  in  1844,  he  writes:  "  After  nearly 
four  years  of  African  life  as  a  bachelor,  I  screwed  up 
courage  to  put  a  question  beneath  one  of  the  fruit 
trees,  the  result  of  which  is  that  I  became  united  in 
marriage  to  Mr.  Moffat's  eldest  daughter,  Mary." 

2.  The  young  couple  spent  their  first  year  at  Ma- 
botsa ;  then  on  to  Chonuane,  forty  miles  north.  "  The 
chief,  Sechele,  here  was  his  first  convert,  and  in  a  few 
weeks  was  able  to  read  the  Bible,  his  favorite  book  be- 
ing Isaiah.  '  He  was  a  fine  man,  that  Isaiah ;  he 
knew  how  to  speak.'  "  In  his  newborn  zeal  Sechele 
proposed  summary  methods  of  conversion.  "  Do  you 
think  you  can  make  my  people  believe  by  talking  to 
them  ? "  he  urged.  "  I  can  make  them  do  nothing 
except  by  thrashing  them,  and  if  you  like  I  shall  call 
my  headman,  and  with  our  whips  of  rhinoceros  hide 
we  will  soon  make  them  all  believe  together."  This 
offer  was  declined,  and  Sechele  soon  began  to  under- 
stand Livingstone's  spirit  and  to  adopt  his  methods, 
though  their  apparent  failure  grieved  him  sorely.  He 
began  family  worship  in  his  house,  and  surprised  Liv- 
ingstone by  the  simple  and  beautiful  style  in  which 
he  conducted  it;  but  except  his  own  family  no  one 
attended.  "  In  former  times,"  he  complained,  "  if  a 
chief  was  fond  of  hunting,  all  his  people  got  dogs 
and  became  fond  of  hunting,  too.  If  he  loved  beer, 
they  all  rejoiced  in  strong  drink.  But  now  it  is  dif- 
ferent. I  love  the  Word  of  God,  but  not  one  of  my 
brethren  will  join  me." 


12  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

His  Spirit  and  Methods.  —  i.  After  a  time  they 
go  still  farther  north,  to  Kolobeng.  Livingstone  is 
never  idle.  He  gathers  information,  heals  the  sick  and 
tells  the  natives  of  Jesus,  ending  every  article,  every 
letter  and  every  prayer  with  the  words,  "  Who  will 
penetrate  Africa" f  He  hears  of  a  doctrinal  contro- 
versy going  on  at  home,  and  it  makes  him  sick  at 
heart  to  know  that  millions  perish  while  well-fed  breth- 
ren split  theological  hairs.  He  gains  few  converts, 
but  he  only  reports  the  actual  number,  saying  that  five 
good  ones  are  better  than  fifty  poor  ones,  though  fifty 
sounds  better  in  the  statistics.  At  this  period  his 
brother  Charles  came  to  America  to  secure  an  edu- 
cation that  he  might  be  a  missionary.  He  had  not 
money  enough  to  get  it  in  England.  He  landed  in 
New  York  with  $io,  where  he  bought  a  loaf  of  bread 
and  a  piece  of  cheese  and  started  for  Oberlin  College. 

2.  The  Missionary  and  Physician.  —  In  1849  Liv- 
ingstone discovered  Lake  N'gami,  the  first  European 
to  look  upon  its  waters.  But  at  once  he  declared  that 
the  discovery  was  a  part  of  the  enterprise  for  Christ's 
Kingdom  and  would  open  the  way  into  the  interior. 
He  never  forgot  the  "  smoke  of  the  thousand  villages." 
Discovering  lakes  and  exploring  new  tracts  were  only 
means  to  ends.  In  1850  one  of  his  children,  a  babe 
six  weeks  old,  died.  A  little  later  Charles  proposed 
to  him  to  come  to  America  and  settle,  which  brought 
forth  the  famous  declaration :  "  I  am  a  missionary, 
heart  and  soul.  God  had  an  only  Son  and  He  was  a 
missionary  and  a  physician.  I  am  a  poor,  poor  imi- 
tation of  Him,  or  wish  to  be.  In  this  service  I  hope 
to  live,  in  it  I  wish  to  die." 

3.  Large  Plans   Against   Small   Ones.  —  But   this 


DAVID    LIVINGSTONE  13 

missionary  physician  had  the  plans  and  visions  of  a 
statesman.  The  slave-trade  fairly  froze  his  blood.  He 
set  aside  small  plans  for  large  ones.  He  saw  the  traffic 
in  human  beings  intrenched  from  coast  to  coast.  He 
felt  that  a  path  must  be  opened  across  the  continent 
from  east  to  west,  so  that  lawful  commerce  and  Chris- 
tian civilization  could  enter.  Men  at  home,  men  who 
had  never  seen  a  mission  field,  the  men  who  always 
know  at  a  distance  far  more  than  the  man  on  the 
ground,  —  these  men  complained.  They  styled  Liv- 
ingstone's efforts  as  "  wanderings."  They  wanted  him 
to  settle  down,  to  teach,  to  train  a  few  souls.  He 
knew  that  to  be  a  noble  work,  but  it  was  not  his  at 
that  time.  He  writes  to  his  father,  "  The  conversion 
of  a  few  cannot  be  put  into  the  scale  against  the  truth 
spread  over  the  whole  country."  The  word  "  wan- 
derings," he  said,  contained  a  lie  like  a  serpent  coiled 
up  on  its  bosom. 

His  Family  in  England.  —  i.  On  April  23,  1852, 
Mrs.  Livingstone  and  the  four  children  started  for 
England.  It  was  a  very  great  trial  to  them  all  but  it 
was  necessary.  The  children  could  not  be  educated 
in  that  heathen  land.  Livingstone  spoke  two  or  three 
sentences  in  connection  with  this  event  which  ought 
to  be  written  in  letters  of  light  before  all  managers 
of  missions  and  missionaries.  These  are  the  sentences : 
"  Missionaries  expose  their  children  to  a  contamination 
which  they  have  had  no  hand  in  producing.  We  ex- 
pose them  and  ourselves  for  a  time  in  order  to  elevate 
those  sad  captives  of  sin  and  Satan  who  are  the  vic- 
tims of  the  degradation  of  ages.  None  of  those  who 
complain  about  missionaries'  sending  their  children 
home  ever  descend  to  this.     The  mark  of  Cain  is  on 


14  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

your  foreheads,  your  father  is  a  missionary.  Our 
children  ought  to  have  both  the  sympathies  and  prayers 
of  those  at  whose  bidding  we  become  strangers  for 
Ufe." 

2.  David  and  Mary  Livingstone  consecrated  them- 
selves to  the  redemption  of  Africa,  her  consecration 
being  as  true  and  as  willing  as  his.  The  separation 
was  as  painful  for  her  as  for  him.  She  had  no  enjoy- 
ment in  England  with  her  noble  husband  in  Africa. 
And  yet  they  said,  if  merchants,  explorers  and  sea- 
men could  separate  from  their  families  for  years  for 
love  of  gain,  could  not  they  endure  as  much  for  Christ  ? 
There  were  those,  most  of  them  comfortable  souls 
sitting  at  home,  who  said  that  this  separation  was  for 
the  mutual  pleasure  of  this  heroic  pair;  that  Africa 
was  more  agreeable  to  David  with  Mary  in  England 
and  England  more  attractive  for  her  with  the  doctor 
in  Africa.    Listen  to  one  of  his  letters: 

"  My  Dearest  Mary  :  How  I  miss  you  now  and  the 
children !  My  heart  yearns  incessantly  over  you.  How 
many  thoughts  of  the  past  crowd  into  my  mind !  I 
feel  as  if  I  could  treat  you  all  much  more  tenderly 
and  lovingly  than  ever.  You  have  been  a  great  bless- 
ing to  me.  You  attended  to  my  comfort  in  many, 
many  ways.  May  God  bless  you  for  all  your  kind- 
nesses! I  see  no  face  now  to  be  compared  with  that 
sunburnt  one  which  has  so  often  greeted  me  with  its 
kind  looks.  Let  us  do  our  duty  to  our  Savior,  and 
we  shall  meet  again.  I  wish  that  time  were  now. 
You  may  read  the  letters  over  again  which  I  wrote  at 
Mabotsa,  the  sweet  time,  you  know.  As  I  told  you 
before  I  tell  you  again,  they  are  true,  true;  there  is 
not  a  bit  of  hypocrisy  in  them.    I  never  show  all  my 


DAVID    LIVINGSTONE  1 5 

feelings;  but  I  can  say  truly,  my  dearest,  that  I 
loved  you  when  I  married  you,  and  the  longer  I  lived 
with  you  I  loved  you  the  better.  .  .  ,  Let  us  do 
our  duty  to  Christ,  and  He  will  bring  us  through 
the  world  with  honor  and  usefulness.  He  is  our  refuge 
and  high  tower;  let  us  trust  in  Him  at  all  times  and 
in  all  circumstances.  Love  Him  more  and  more,  and 
diffuse  His  love  among  the  children.  Take  them  all 
around  you  and  kiss  them  for  me.  Tell  them  I  have 
left  them  for  the  love  of  Jesus,  and  they  must  love 
Him,  too,  and  avoid  sin,  for  that  displeases  Jesus.  I 
shall  be  delighted  to  hear  of  you  all  safe  in  England." 
His  Work  While  Alone.  —  i.  Being  left  thus 
alone,  he  turned  his  face  tozvard  the  interior,  visited 
numerous  tribes,  preached  everywhere,  went  alone,  car- 
rying neither  purse  nor  scrip ;  living  on  what  he  found 
or  what  was  given  to  him,  walking  or  sleeping  in  the 
midst  of  hostile  tribes  in  absolute  fearlessness.  Part 
of  the  country  was  flooded,  and  the  travelers  had  to 
wade  all  day,  forcing  their  way  through  sharp-bladed 
reeds,  with  hands  all  raw  and  bloody,  emerging  with 
knees,  hands  and  face  cut  and  bleeding.  It  required 
all  his  tact  and  power  to  prevent  the  guides  and  ser- 
vants from  deserting  him.  Every  one  but  himself 
was  attacked  with  a  fever,  and  he  writes,  "  I  would 
like  to  devote  a  portion  of  my  life  to  the  discovery  of 
a  remedy  for  this  terrible  disease."  At  last  he  was 
smitten  down,  and  we  find  in  his  journal :  "  Am  I 
on  my  way  to  die  in  the  Sebituanes  country?  Have  I 
seen  the  end  of  my  wife  and  children?  O  Jesus,  fill 
me  with  Thy  love  now,  and  I  beseech  Thee  accept  me 
and  use  me  a  little  for  Thy  glory.  I  have  done  noth- 
ing for  Thee  yet,  and  I  would  like  to  do  something." 


1 6  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

2.  Then  some  of  the  missionaries  in  South  Africa 
accused  him  of  worldly  ambition.  They  said  that 
he  was  sinking  the  missionary  in  the  explorer.  But 
this  is  what  he  writes  about  it :  "  The  natives  listen 
but  never  suppose  the  truth  must  be  embodied  in  actual 
life.  ...  A  minister  who  had  not  seen  so  much 
pioneer  service  as  I  have  done  would  have  been  shocked 
to  see  so  little  effect  produced.  .  .  .  We  can  afford 
to  work  in  faith.  .  .  .  When  we  view  the  state 
of  the  world  and  its  advancing  energies,  by  childlike 
—  or  call  it  childish  —  faith,  we  see  the  earth  filling 
with  the  knowledge  of  the  glory  of  God,  aye,  all  na- 
tions seeing  His  glory  and  bowing  before  Him  whose 
right  it  is  to  reign.  We  work  toward  another  state 
of  things.  Future  missionaries  will  be  rewarded  by 
conversions  for  every  sermon.  We  are  their  pioneers. 
They  will  doubtless  have  more  light  than  we,  but  we 
served  our  Master  earnestly  and  proclaimed  the  same 
gospel  they  will  do."  And  again  he  writes :  "  I  place 
no  value  on  anything  I  have  or  possess  except  in  re- 
lation to  the  Kingdom  of  Christ.  It  is  not  the  en- 
countering of  difficulties  and  dangers  in  obedience  to 
inward  spiritual  promptings  which  constitutes  tempt- 
ing Providence,  but  the  acting  without  faith,  proceed- 
ing on  our  own  errands  with  no  previous  convictions 
of  duty  and  no  prayer  for  aid  and  direction.  Help  me, 
Thou  who  knowest  my  frame  and  pitiest  me  as  a 
father !  " 

3.  Wanted  to  Open  a  Way  to  the  West  Coast. — His 
whole  mind  was  set  to  find  a  way  to  the  West  Coast. 
He  knew  that  the  attempt  was  in  the  nature  of  a  for- 
lorn hope,  but  still  it  was  worth  trying.  He  wrote:' 
"  Cannot  the  love  of  Christ  carry  the  missionary  where 


DAVID    LIVINGSTONE  I7 

the  slave-trade  carries  the  trader?  I  shall  open  up  a 
path  to  the  interior  or  perish."  Now,  it  does  not  matter 
very  much  what  the  world  says  or  thinks  of  a  man  with 
that  spirit.  For  years  he  saw  no  white  face.  For  years 
he  lived  alone  in  the  heart  of  the  Dark  Continent ; 
battled  with  polygamy,  with  cannabalism,  incest  and 
slavery,  and  with  every  conceivable  form  of  detestable 
sin.  But  the  difficulties  of  this  journey  to  the  West 
Coast  did  not  discourage  him.  He  calmly  made  up  his 
mind  that  he  was  as  likely  as  not  to  die  on  that  journey, 
so  he  made  his  will,  and  this  is  what  he  says :  "  May 
Christ  accept  my  children  for  His  service  and  sanctify 
them  for  it !  My  blessing  on  my  wife ;  may  God  com- 
fort her !  If  my  watch  comes  back  after  I  am  cut  off 
it  belongs  to  Agnes ;  if  my  sextant,  it  is  Robert's ;  the 
Paris  medal  to  Thomas,  and  the  double-barreled  gun  to 
Zouza.  Be  a  father  to  the  fatherless  and  a  husband  to 
the  widow,  for  Jesus'  sake.  The  Boers,  by  taking  pos- 
session of  all  my  goods,  have  saved  me  the  trouble  of 
making  a  will." 

4.  Linyanti  to  St.  Paul  de  Loanda.  —  On  November 
II,  1853,  he  left  Linyanti,  almost  in  the  center  of  lower 
Africa,  and  seven  months  later  arrived  at  St.  Paul  de 
Loanda,  on  the  West  Coast.  There  is  no  way  to 
describe  this  journey.  It  is  full  of  incident.  But  the 
most  impressive  thing  about  it  all  was  the  horrors  of 
the  slave-trade  as  witnessed  on  this  long  journey. 
Every  day  he  saw  families  torn  asunder,  dead  bodies 
along  the  way,  gangs  chained  and  yoked,  skeletons 
grinning  against  the  trees  and  by  the  roadside.  As  he 
rowed  along  on  the  river  Shire,  the  paddles  of  his  boat 
were  clogged  in  the  morning  with  the  bodies  of  women 
and  children  who  had  died  in  the  slave-chained  gangs 


l8  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

and  been  thrown  into  the  river  at  night.  The  air  was 
thick  with  vultures  following  them.  He  counted  bodies 
in  the  stream  by  the  score  as  they  came  floating  down. 
He  found  the  horrible  system  intrenched  from  the 
center  of  the  continent  to  the  coast.  It  is  scarcely  sur- 
prising, therefore,  that  he  felt  that  the  exposure  of  this 
gigantic  iniquity  must  be  his  principal  work.  So  he 
writes  to  his  father  that  he  cannot  settle  down  to  teach 
and  train  and  turn  a  few  souls  to  Christ.  The  con- 
version of  a  few  cannot  be  put  into  the  scale  against 
the  truth  spread  over  the  whole  country.  This  lonely 
missionary  opening  up  a  highway  across  the  continent 
for  commerce,  for  civilization,  for  the  gospel,  rose  to 
the  stature  of  a  statesman. 

Beautiful  incidents  occurred  on  this  trip  showing 
the  devotion  to  his  men.  Listen :  "  Some  of  my  men 
proposed  to  return  home,  and  the  prospect  of  being 
obliged  to  turn  back  from  the  threshold  of  the  Portu- 
guese settlements  distressed  me  exceedingly.  After 
using  all  my  powers  of  persuasion,  I  declared  that  if 
they  now  returned  I  should  go  on  alone,  and,  returning 
into  my  little  tent,  I  lifted  up  my  heart  to  Him  who 
hears  the  sighing  of  the  soul.  Presently  the  headman 
came  in.  '  Do  not  be  disheartened,'  he  said ;  '  we  will 
never  leave  you.  Wherever  you  lead  we  will  follow. 
Our  remarks  were  only  made  on  account  of  the  in- 
justice of  these  people.'  Others  followed  and  with  the 
most  artless  simplicity  of  manner  told  me  to  be  com- 
forted — '  they  were  all  my  children ;  they  knew  no  one 
but  Sekeletu  and  me  and  would  die  for  me ;  they  had 
spoken  in  bitterness  of  spirit,  feeling  they  could  do 
nothing.' " 

It  was  seven  months  before  he  finally  reached  the 


DAVID   LIVINGSTONE  I9 

West  Coast.  The  hardships  had  been  incredible. 
Thirty  attacks  of  fever  had  so  weakened  him  that  he 
could  scarcely  mount  his  ox  or  hold  an  instrument  for 
a  simple  calculation.  Once  more,  near  the  end,  the 
hearts  of  his  men  began  to  fail,  and  they  hinted  their 
doubts  to  him,  and  he  said :  "  If  you  suspect  me  you 
can  return,  for  I  am  as  ignorant  of  Loanda  as  you. 
But  nothing  -wiW  happen  to  you  but  happens  to  me. 
We  have  stood  by  each  other  hitherto,  and  will  do  so 
until  the  last."  When  they  reached  Loanda  Living- 
stone was  poor  and  ragged,  a  skeleton,  almost  con- 
sumed with  dysentery  and  famine.  It  seemed  for  weeks 
that  he  could  see  nothing  but  visions  of  naked  men 
with  spears  and  clubs,  bodies  of  slaves  dead  and  dying, 
pestilence  walking  at  noonday,  destruction  wasting  at 
midnight,  a  land  covered  with  skeletons,  preyed  on  by 
fever,  looted  by  the  slave-driver,  appealing  hands  every- 
where and  no  deliverer,  no  physician. 

5.  Experiences  at  St.  Paul  de  Loanda.  —  When  he 
reached  the  coast  a  Portuguese  gentleman  gave  him  a 
suit  of  clothes,  and  Livingstone  blessed  him  in  the 
name  of  Him  who  said,  "  I  was  naked,  and  ye  clothed 
me."  Dr.  Gabriel,  the  English  commissioner  for  the 
suppression  of  the  slave-trade,  received  him  with  the 
utmost  kindness,  giving  him  his  own  bed,  of  which 
Livingstone  said :  "  Never  shall  I  forget  the  luxurious 
pleasure  I  enjoyed  in  feeling  myself  again  on  a  good 
English  bed  after  six  months'  sleeping  on  the  ground." 
And  yet  great  disappointment  awaited  him  here. 
There  were  no  letters  from  home,  no  tidings  from 
family  or  friends.  An  English  vessel  lay  in  the  harbor 
and  a  berth  was  offered  him.  No  one  would  have 
complained  if  he  had  accepted  the  opportunity  to  go 


20  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

home.  He  prepared  his  journals,  made  reports  and 
observations,  put  them  aboard  the  Forerunner,  turned 
his  back  on  the  ship  and  let  it  set  sail.  The  ship  was 
lost  off  Madeira,  and  all  her  passengers  perished  but 
one.  Of  course  all  Livingstone's  papers  were  lost. 
•Upon  hearing  of  it  he  stopped,  reproduced  his  dis- 
patches and  maps.  It  was  like  Carlyle's  rewriting  his 
"  French  Revolution "  after  its  destruction  in  Mill's 
household.  In  the  upper  room  in  Cheyne  Row,  Chel- 
sea, the  letter  of  Carlyle  to  his  publishers  is  carefully 
preserved.  In  it  he  says :  "  Do  not  pity  me ;  forward 
me,  rather,  as  a  runner,  that  though  tripped  down  will 
not  lie  there  but  rise  and  run  again."  These  were 
kindred  souls. 

6.  West  Coast  to  East.  —  Why  did  he  not  go  home  ? 
He  had  promised  the  natives  that  he  would  see  them 
home.  He  had  pledged  his  word  to  Sekeletu  that  he 
would  return  with  the  men,  and  his  word  to  the  black 
men  of  Africa  was  just  as  sacred  as  it  would  have 
been  if  pledged  to  the  Queen.  He  kept  it  as  faithfully 
as  an  oath  made  to  Almighty  God.  It  involved  a 
journey  nearly  tzvo  years  in  length,  a  line  of  march 
2,000  miles  long,  through  jungles,  swamps  and  desert, 
through  scenes  of  surpassing  beauty.  But  it  was  two 
years  from  that  day  before  he  came  out  on  the  east 
coast  at  Quilimane,  and  from  this  time  he  was  the  best 
known,  best  loved  and  most  perfectly  trusted  man  in 
Africa.  Everywhere  and  every  day  he  had  preached. 
He  had  healed  the  sick  of  their  diseases.  He  had  dis- 
covered the  Victoria  Falls  and  the  two  magnificent 
ranges  which  were  free  from  the  fever  and  the  fly.  At 
the  junction  of  the  Loangwa  and  Zambezi  rivers  he 
thought  that  his  end  had  come,  and  he  writes  in  his 


DAVID    LIVINGSTONE  21 

diary,  "  O  Jesus,  grant  me  reliance  on  Thy  powerful 
hand  and  resignation  to  Thy  will."  Then,  thinking 
of  home  and  of  what  he  might  say  if  he  could  get  back 
to  England,  he  adds :  "  But  wilt  Thou  not  permit  me 
to  plead  for  Africa?  See,  Lord,  how  the  heathen  rise 
up  against  me,  as  against  thy  Son.  A  guilty,  weak, 
and  helpless  worm,  on  Thy  kind  arms  I  fall."  Then 
the  Scotch  pluck  asserts  itself,  and  he  writes :  "  Should 
such  a  man  as  I  flee !  Nay,  verily,  I  shall  take  ob- 
servations of  latitude  and  longitude  to-night,  though 
they  be  my  last.  I  feel  quite  calm  now,  thank  God. 
O  Lord,  remember  me  and  Thy  cause  in  Africa." 
From  the  perils  of  this  day  the  Lord  delivered  him, 
and  he  was  able  to  make  his  report,  transmitting  to  the 
London  societies  a  map  of  Central  Africa,  a  map  of  the 
highest  value. 

At  this  very  time  Sir  Roderick  Murchison  twites  him 
of  the  honor  paid  him  by  the  Royal  Geographical 
Society  for  the  greatest  triumph  in  geographical  re- 
search effected  in  our  times,  and  tells  him  why  the 
society  has  conferred  its  gold  medal  upon  him.  But 
the  heart  of  the  doctor  is  larger  than  the  heart  of  the 
explorer,  and  his  chief  human  joy  was  that  he  had 
discovered  what  he  believed  to  be  a  remedy  for  the 
deadly  fever. 

First  Visit  to  England.  —  i.  It  was  now  sixteen 
years  since  he  had  left  England,  and  there  was  no 
reason  why  he  should  not  return.  So,  on  the  ninth 
of  December,  1856,  he  reached  his  home  once  more 
and  found  himself  almost  the  most  famous  man  in 
London.  Honors  poured  upon  him  enough  to  turn 
a  man's  head.  The  Royal  Society  held  a  special 
meeting  of  welcome.     He  was  introduced  as  the  man 


22  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS   IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

who  had  traveled  over  ii,ooo  miles  of  African  ground, 
had  done  incalculable  service  in  the  way  of  explora- 
tion, had  opened  a  whole  world  of  immortal  souls  to 
the  gospel  and  had  glorified  the  British  name  by 
faithfully  keeping  his  word  to  the  black  men  to  whom 
he  had  given  it.  Mrs.  Livingstone  stood  by  his  side 
and  Lord  Shaftesbury  paid  her  equal  tribute  with  her 
husband  and  all  England  said  Amen.  Livingstone 
was  presented  to  the  royal  family  and  honored  with 
the  freedom  of  London.  Everywhere  the  most  dis- 
tinguished honors  were  paid  him.  He  remained  in 
England  less  than  two  years,  working  night  and  day 
upon  his  books,  dedicating  the  profits  immediately  to 
the  cause  of  opening  Africa.  But  all  the  time  he  was 
thinking,  not  of  England,  but  of  the  Dark  Continent. 
He  said  of  himself  and  his  wife,  "  Whoever  stays,  we 
will  go."  He  had  further  plans  of  exploration.  "  But 
always,"  as  he  writes,  "  the  end  of  the  exploration  is 
the  beginning  of  the  enterprise."  His  own  country, 
Scotland,  honored  him  with  the  freedom  of  its  cities. 
Its  universities  gave  him  their  highest  degrees.  There 
were  public  receptions  and  a  public  testimonial. 

2.  There  were  farewell  meetings,  attended  by  nobles 
and  scholars,  and  at  last,  as  he  started  away,  Sir 
Roderick  Murchison  said  :  "  Notwithstanding  months 
of  laudation  and  a  shower  of  all  university  honors,  he 
is  the  same  honest,  true-hearted  David  Livingstone  as 
when  he  came  forth  from  the  wilds  of  Africa."  At 
Cambridge  he  delivered  a  memorable  address,  in  which 
he  said :  "  It  is  deplorable  to  think  that  one  of  the 
noblest  of  our  missionary  bodies,  the  Church  Mission- 
ary Society,  is  compelled  to  send  to  Germany  for  mis- 
sionaries.   The  sort  of  men  who  are  wanted  for  mis- 


DAVID   LIVINGSTONE  23 

sionaries  are  such  as  I  see  before  me.  I  beg  to  direct 
your  attention  to  Africa.  I  know  that  in  a  few  years 
I  shall  be  cut  off  in  that  country  which  is  now  open. 
Do  not  let  it  be  shut  again.  I  go  back  to  Africa  to 
try  to  open  a  path  for  commerce  and  Christianity. 
Do  you  carry  out  the  work  which  I  have  begun.  I 
leave  it  with  you." 

Return  to  Africa.  —  i.  Sixteen  months  he  re- 
mained at  home,  and  went  away  with  the  net  result 
of  his  visit,  as  was  said  at  the  farewell  dinner,  that 
he  had  found  Africa  the  Dark  Continent,  and  left  it 
the  most  interesting  part  of  the  globe  to  Englishmen. 
He  went  back  as  the  Queen's  Consul,  wearing  the  gold 
band  about  his  cap,  but  he  went  once  more  for  the 
same  old  enterprise.  A  public  reception  was  given 
him  at  Cape  Town,  where  six  years  before  they  had 
hated  him.  In  1858  he  explored  the  Zambezi,  in  1859 
the  Shire,  in  i860  he  discovered  Lake  Nyassa  and  in 
1 86 1  he  explored  the  river  Rovuma.  He  established 
the  sites  of  mission  stations,  preached  constantly  and 
carried  on  a  religious  and  scientific  correspondence 
with  the  leading  societies  of  England.  His  purpose, 
recorded  away  back  at  the  beginning,  grew  stronger 
rather  than  weaker.  In  1862  he  preached  to  the 
tribes  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Nyassa.  He  found  that 
20,000  slaves  were  dragged  from  that  region  alone  and 
sold  at  Zanzibar,  and  he  learned  that  as  many  more 
were  cruelly  murdered.  His  letters  thrilled  the  civi- 
lized world  as  he  exposed  the  iniquity  of  this  horrid 
traffic. 

2.  Death  of  His  Wife.  —  Mrs.  Livingstone  re- 
turned to  Scotland  in  1859,  placed  the  children  in 
school  and  in  1862  rejoined  her  husband  in  Africa. 


24  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

For  the  Dark  Continent  they  intended  to  live  and  die 
together,  but  less  than  six  months  after  her  return 
her  health  gave  way,  and  on  the  banks  of  the  Shire 
the  daughter  of  Robert  Moffat,  the  wife  of  David 
Livingstone,  lay  down  to  her  everlasting  rest.  Then 
the  man  who  had  never  feared  the  face  of  beast  or 
foe,  who  had  faced  death  countless  times,  cried  out 
like  a  stricken  child,  "  For  the  first  time  in  my  life 
I  want  to  die."  The  body  of  Mary  Livingstone  was 
buried  under  a  baobab  tree  at  Shupanga.  But  Living- 
stone's work  was  not  done.  Even  grief  must  not  hin- 
der him  from  doing  it.  He  must  penetrate  to  the 
fountains  of  the  Nile,  and  he  must  break  up  the  in- 
famous slave-trade. 

Second  Visit  to  England.  —  i.  In  1864  he  re- 
turned to  London  again,  with  two  objects  in  view, 
the  exposure  of  the  slave  trade  and  the  securing  of 
means  with  which  to  open  a  new  mission  above  the 
Portuguese  lines.  On  the  first  of  August,  1864,  he 
was  with  his  mother  and  children  at  Hamilton.  Only 
his  eldest  son,  Robert,  a  lad  of  eighteen,  was  absent. 
The  boy  had  gone  to  Natal  in  the  hope  of  reaching 
his  father.  Failing  in  that,  he  had  crossed  to  America, 
enlisted  in  the  Federal  army,  had  been  badly  wounded, 
taken  prisoner,  died  at  last  in  the  hospital  and  was 
buried  in  the  National  Cemetery  at  Gettysburg.  There 
is  something  very  fitting  in  all  that.  The  father  was 
giving  his  life  for  the  perfect  liberty  of  the  black  man 
in  the  Dark  Continent;  the  boy  was  giving  his  for 
the  liberty  of  the  black  man  and  the  integrity  of  the 
nation,  and  was  buried  at  last  in  the  spot  over  which 
sounded  Lincoln's  immortal  words. 

2.  Livingstone  was  everywhere  received  with  the 


DAVID    LIVINGSTONE  3$ 

highest  honors.  He  was  with  the  Turkish  ambassador 
when  the  crowd  cheered,  and  Livingstone  said, 
"  These  cheers  are  for  you."  And  the  ambassador  re- 
pHed,  "  No,  I  am  only  what  my  master  made  me ;  you 
are  what  you  made  yourself." 

Return  to  Africa.  —  i.  Back  again  after  a  few 
months  in  1866,  he  reached  the  African  coast,  ascended 
the  Rovuma,  disappeared  for  three  years,  visited  Lakes 
Moero  and  Tanganyika.  Meantime  he  preached  the 
gospel  to  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands.  He  still 
found  the  villages  of  which  Moffat  had  spoken  to  him 
years  before,  where  the  name  of  Jesus  had  never  been 
spoken.  And  this  was  his  faith :  "  It  is  a  mistake  to 
suppose  that  God  is  too  exalted  to  notice  our  smallest 
affairs.  A  general  attends  to  the  smallest  details  of 
his  army.  A  sparrow  cannot  fall  to  the  ground  with- 
out your  Father.  With  his  ever-loving  eye  upon  me 
I  may  truly  go  to  the  front  with  the  message  of  peace 
and  good  will."  The  Portuguese  intercepted  his  let- 
ters and  cut  off  his  supplies.  He  writes  that  he  is 
near  the  source  of  the  Nile  and  possibly  in  the  wilder- 
ness where  Moses  once  was. 

2.  In  1871  his  strength  utterly  failed.  His  feet 
ulcerated,  his  teeth  came  out,  he  lay  in  his  low  hut  for 
eighty  days  and  read  his  Bible  four  times  through. 
He  writes  upon  the  fly  leaf :  "  No  letters  for  three 
years.  I  have  a  sore  longing  to  finish  and  go  home, 
if  God  wills."  Relief,  letters  and  supplies  had  all 
been  sent  to  him,  but  he  never  received  them.  Many 
of  the  letters  that  he  wrote  never  reached  their  des- 
tination. But  he  had  accomplished  his  purpose.  He 
had  exposed  the  slave-trade.  In  1871  he  reached 
Ujiji,  a  worn,  exhausted  skeleton  of  a  man.      The 


26  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

world  had  not  heard  from  him  for  years,  and  the  anx- 
ious question  everywhere  was,  "  Is  he  dead  or  aUve  ?  " 
The  Royal  Society  sent  out  a  search  expedition. 

Stanley  and  Livingstone.  —  i.  One  day  Henry 
M.  Stanley  was  sitting  in  a  hotel  in  Madrid,  when  a 
telegram  was  handed  to  him  which  read :  "  Come  to 
Paris  on  important  business.  Bennett."  On  his  ar- 
rival Mr.  Bennett  said,  '*  Where  do  you  think  Living- 
stone is  ?  "  The  correspondent  could  not  tell  —  could 
not  tell  whether  he  was  alive,  of  course.  "  Well," 
said  Mr.  Bennett,  ''  I  think  he  is  alive  and  that  he 
may  be  found,  and  I  am  going  to  send  you  to  find 
him."  And  this  was  the  order,  "  Take  what  money 
you  want,  but  find  Livingstone."  In  January,  1871, 
Stanley  reached  Zanzibar  and  began  to  organize  his 
expedition.  For  eleven  months  this  determined  man 
went  on  through  incredible  hardships.  He  coaxed  the 
weary,  whipped  the  stubborn.  The  feet  of  some  were 
bleeding  from  thorns,  others  fell  by  the  way,  but  on 
they  went.  Once  in  his  journey  Stanley  wrote:  "  No 
living  man  shall  stop  me.  Only  death  can  prevent 
me;  but  death — not  even  this.  I  shall  not  die;  I  will 
not  die;  I  cannot  die.  Something  tells  me  I  shall 
find  him.  And  write  it  larger,  find  him,  find  him  !  " 
Even  the  words  are  inspiring.  One  day  a  caravan 
passed  and  reported  that  a  white  man  had  just  reached 
Ujiji.  Stanley's  heart  thumped  as  he  asked  them, 
"  Was  he  young  or  old  ?  "  "  He  is  old  ;  he  has  white 
hair  on  his  face;  he  is  sick."  So  Stanley  pushed 
on  night  and  day  until  they  came  in  sight  of  Ujiji. 
"  Unfurl  the  flags  and  load  the  guns,"  said  Stanley, 
his  nerves  quivering  with  excitement.  And  the  flags 
floated  out,  and  the  guns  thundered  over  the  plain. 


DAVID    LIVINGSTONE  27 

And  they  were  answered  by  hundreds  of  Africans 
with  shouts.  Suddenly  Stanley  heard  a  voice  say  in 
good  English,  "  Good  morning,  sir."  He  was  startled, 
and  asked  abruptly,  "  Who  the  mischief  are  you  ? " 
"  I  am  Susi,  the  servant  of  Dr.  Livingstone."  Then 
a  thrill  went  through  Stanley's  soul,  and  all  the 
fatigues  and  the  perils  of  that  year  were  forgotten. 

2.  Let  Stanley  himself  tell  the  story:  "  First  his 
two  servants  appeared ;  by  and  by  the  doctor.  As  I 
advanced  slowly  toward  him  I  noticed  he  was  pale, 
looked  wearied,  had  a  gray  beard,  wore  a  bluish  cap 
with  a  faded  gold  band  around  it,  had  on  a  red- 
sleeved  waistcoat  and  a  pair  of  gray  tweed  trousers. 
I  would  have  run  to  him,  only  I  was  a  coward ;  would 
have  embraced  him,  only  did  not  know  how  he  would 
receive  me.  So  I  did  what  cowardice  and  false  pride 
suggested,  walked  deliberately  to  him,  took  off  my 
hat  and  said,  '  Dr.  Livingstone,  I  presume  ? '  '  Yes,' 
said  he,  with  a  kind  smile,  lifting  his  cap.  I  replaced 
my  hat,  he  his  cap,  and  we  grasped  hands.  And  I 
said,  '  I  thank  God  I  am  permitted  to  see  you,'  and 
he  answered,  *  I  feel  thankful  that  I  am  here  to  wel- 
come you.' " 

3.  His  Influence  on  Stanley.  —  Of  course  Stanley 
was  supplied  with  all  that  the  good  man  needed.  He 
brought  Livingstone  letters  for  which  he  had  pa- 
tiently waited  for  years.  He  brought  him  news.  It 
was  two  full  years  since  Livingstone  had  heard  any- 
thing from  Europe.  The  coming  of  Stanley  revived 
Livingstone's  spirits.  Stanley  remained  with  him  for 
months.  The  correspondent  of  the  New  York  Her- 
ald took  his  first  lessons  in  exploration  at  the  hands  of 
the  master.     He  grew  into  enthusiasm  and  hero  wor- 


28  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

ship.  He  wrote,  "  You  may  take  any  point  in  Dr. 
Livingstone's  character  and  analyze  it  carefully,  and 
I  will  challenge  any  man  to  find  a  fault  in  it."  And 
he  had  discovered  Livingstone's  secret.  "  His  relig- 
ion," he  writes,  "  is  a  constant,  earnest,  sincere  prac- 
tice. It  is  neither  demonstrative  nor  loud,  but  it 
manifests  itself  in  a  quiet,  practical  way  and  is  always 
at  work.  In  him  religion  exhibits  its  loveliest  features ; 
it  governs  his  conduct,  not  only  toward  his  servants, 
but  toward  the  natives,  the  bigoted  Mohammedans 
and  all  who  come  in  contact  with  him.  Without  it 
Livingstone,  with  his  ardent  temperament,  his  en- 
thusiasm, his  high  spirit  and  courage,  must  have  been 
uncompanionable  and  a  hard  master.  Religion  has 
tamed  him  and  made  him  a  Christian  gentleman,  the 
most  companionable  of  men  and  indulgent  of  mas- 
ters." Stanley  received  and  mastered  a  true  lesson 
in  the  treatment  of  natives.  He  tried  to  induce  the 
doctor  to  go  home  with  him.  But  Livingstone's  heart 
was  resolute.  The  old  explorer  set  his  face  as  a  flint. 
He  did  not  feel  that  his  work  was  done.  Stanley 
started  eastward,  and  the  old  man  in  the  gray  clothes 
with  bended  head  and  slow  steps  returned  to  his  soli- 
tude. "  I  took  one  more  look  at  him,"  said  Stanley. 
"  He  was  standing  near  the  gate  of  Kwihaha  with  his 
servants  near  him.  I  waved  my  handkerchief  to  him, 
and  he  responded  by  lifting  his  cap." 

Livingstone's  Final  Work.  —  i.  In  1872,  March 
ip,  he  zvrites:  "My  birthday!  My  Jesus,  my  King, 
my  Life,  my  All !  I  again  dedicate  my  whole  self  to 
Thee.  Accept  me.  And  grant,  O  gracious  Father, 
that  ere  this  year  is  gone  I  may  finish  my  work.  In 
Jesus's  name  I  ask  it.    Amen." 


DAVID   LIVINGSTONE  29 

2.  May  I,  he  writes:  "  Finished  a  letter  to  the  New 
York  Herald  to  elicit  American  zeal  to  stop  the  East 
Coast  slave-trade.  I  pray  for  a  blessing  upon  it  from 
the  All-Gracious."  The  last  sentence  of  this  letter 
is  the  one  finally  inscribed  on  Livingstone's  tomb. 
"  All  I  can  add  in  my  loneliness,"  it  runs,  "  is.  May 
Heaven's  rich  blessing  come  down  on  every  one  — 
American,  English,  Turk  —  who  will  help  to  heal 
this  open  sore  of  the  world !  " 

3.  Weary  months  follozved  —  months  of  plans,  of 
travels,  of  toils,  of  hardships  —  and  the  last  of  April, 
1873,  a  year  after  Stanley  had  left  him,  he  had  reached 
the  village  of  Ilala,  at  the  southern  end  of  Lake  Bang- 
weolo.  He  had  made  his  observations  and  written 
his  journal  carefully,  had  drawn  maps  and  given  his 
orders.    The  heroic  spirit  was  still  animating  him. 

4.  Dies  on  His  Knees.  —  But  on  the  morning  of  the 
first  of  May,  1873,  at  four  o'clock,  the  boy  who  lay 
at  his  door  called  in  alarm  for  Susi,  fearing  their 
master  was  dead.  "  By  the  candle  still  burning  they 
saw  him,  not  in  bed,  but  kneeling  at  the  bedside  with 
his  head  buried  in  his  hands  upon  the  pillow.  The 
sad  yet  not  unexpected  truth  soon  became  evident ; 
he  had  passed  away  without  a  single  attendant  on  the 
farthest  of  all  his  journeys.  But  he  had  died  in  the 
act  of  prayer  —  prayer  offered  in  that  reverential  at- 
titude about  which  he  was  always  so  particular ;  com- 
mending his  own  spirit  with  all  his  dear  ones,  as  was 
his  wont,  into  the  hands  of  his  Savior ;  and  commend- 
ing Africa  —  his  own  dear  Africa  —  with  all  her  woes 
and  sins  and  wrongs,  to  the  Avenger  of  the  oppressed 
and  the  Redeemer  of  the  lost." 

Brought  to  England.  —  i.  The   behavior  of  his 


30  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

African  servants  after  his  death  is  beyond  all  praise. 
First  they  removed  and  buried  his  heart.  Then  they 
dried  his  body  in  the  sun,  wrapped  it  in  cloths,  lashed 
it  to  a  pole  and  set  out  on  their  homeward  march. 
It  was  a  weary  journey;  exposures,  sickness,  opposi- 
tions, all  combined  to  make  it  difficult.  Nine  weary 
months  tested  their  steadfastness  and  devotion,  and 
on  Saturday,  April  i8,  1874,  nearly  a  year  after  his 
death,  the  remains  of  the  great  missionary  were  com- 
mitted to  their  resting  place  in  Westminster  Abbey. 
2.  The  black  slab  that  marks  the  end  of  the  pil- 
grimage bears  this  inscription: 


H 

K 

W 

> 

tn 

0 

l-H 

3 

6 

a 

M 
•pi 

CO 

X 

M 
M 

Brought  by  Faithful  Hands 
Over  Land  and  Sea 

Here  Rests 
DAVID     LIVINGSTONE 

Missionary, 

Traveller, 

< 

M 
< 

c; 

i-( 

Philanthropist, 

0 

< 

H 
W 

0 

> 

Born  March  19,  1813, 

At  Blantyre,  Lanarkshire. 

Died  May  i,  1873, 

Q 
0 

<y 

55 

< 

< 
to 

> 

d 

At  Chitambo's  Village,  Ilala. 
For  thirty  years  his  life  w^as  spent 

(O 

X 

> 

IN  an  unwearied  effort 
To  evangelize  the  native  races, 

X 

5 

as 

CO 

> 

r 
f 

W 
w 

2 
0 

0 
"i 

H 

To  explore  the  undiscovered  secrets, 
To  abolish  the  desolating  Slave  Trade, 

of  Central  Africa, 
Where  with  his  last  words  he  wrote. 

> 

oi. 

0 
S 

•«; 

< 

CO 

< 

> 
.J 

> 

CO 

"All    I    CAN    ADD    IN    MY    SOLITUDE,    IS, 

CO 

Ed 

< 
< 

r 
0 

May  Heaven's  rich  blessing  come  down 
ON  every  one,  American,  English,  or  Turk, 

s 

< 

0 

0 

WHO  will  help  to  heal 

c 

M 

This  open  sore  of  the  world." 

Tree  Under   Which  the  Heart  of  Livingstone   was   Buried 


DAVID    LIVINGSTONE  3I 

Tributes  and  Influence.  —  i.  The  tributes  are 
all  of  a  kind.  This  from  Sir  Bartle  Frere  will  answer 
as  a  specimen  of  all  the  rest :  "  As  a  whole,  the  work 
of  his  life  will  surely  be  held  up  in  ages  to  come  as  one 
of  singular  nobleness  of  design  and  of  unflinching 
energy  and  self-sacrifice  in  execution.  It  will  be  long 
ere  any  one  man  will  be  able  to  open  so  large  an  ex- 
tent of  unknown  land  to  civilized  mankind ;  yet  longer, 
perhaps,  ere  we  find  a  brighter  example  of  a  life  of 
such  continued  and  useful  self-devotion  to  a  noble 
cause.  I  could  hardly  venture  to  describe  my  estimate 
of  his  character  as  a  Christian,  further  than  by  say- 
ing that  I  never  met  a  man  who  fulfilled  more  com- 
pletely my  idea  of  a  perfect  Christian  gentleman, 
actuated  in  what  he  thought  and  said  and  did  by  the 
highest  and  most  chivalrous  spirit,  modeled  on  the 
precepts  of  his  great  Master  and  Exemplar." 

2.  His  Influence.  —  His  heart  lies  buried  under  the 
tree  in  Ilala,  his  bones  in  Westminster  Abbey ;  but 
"  the  end  of  the  exploration  is  the  beginning  of  the 
enterprise,"  and  his  life  goes  steadily  on.  Long  ago 
Melville  B.  Cox  wrote,  "  Though  a  thousand  die, 
let  not  Africa  be  given  up."  And  that  word,  with 
Livingstone's  last  prayer  there,  is  as  quick  and  power- 
ful in  the  Church  as  it  has  ever  been.  Such  men  as 
Livingstone  constitute  Christianity's  last  answer  to 
heathenism.  Christianity  makes  such  men  as  this. 
This  is  why  it  is  worth  while  to  send  Christianity  to 
all  the  world.  But  Christianity  must  go  in  the  person 
of  such  men  as  this.  It  is  said  that  the  Protestant 
Church  is  liberal  in  its  use  of  Bibles,  and  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church  is  liberal  in  its  use  of  men.  The 
Church   which   shall   redeem   Africa   must  be   liberal 


32  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

with  both.  We  must  send  our  men,  living  epistles, 
with  the  open  Book  in  their  hands.  The  methods  of 
Livingstone  and  the  spirit  of  Livingstone  have  per- 
petual value  for  the  evangelization  of  that  Dark  Con- 
tinent. 

3.  His  Spirit  and  Method.  —  In  Stanley's  great  ad- 
dress before  the  Methodist  preachers  of  New  York 
he  used  these  words :  "  Now,  cast  your  eye  at  the 
south  part  of  Africa.  There  the  European  has  come, 
and  he  is  spreading  his  beliefs  and  his  creeds  and  his 
religion  in  like  manner,  and  introducing  his  system  of 
civilization ;  and  they  are  advancing  steadily  and 
slowly  toward  the  equatorial  region,  until  by  and  by 
they  are  arrested  in  like  manner  as  they  come  under 
the  influence  of  the  Zambezi.  But  one  bold  man,  a 
missionary,  left  the  ranks  of  those  who  were  pressing 
on  toward  the  north  and  pushed  on  and  on  until  he 
came  to  the  Zambezi.  He  felt  that  influence,  but, 
undaunted,  he  pressed  on  and  crossed  Africa  to  St. 
Paul  de  Loanda.  He  returned  again  with  his  native 
followers  to  Linyanti,  and  the  chief  of  the  Alakololo 
gave  him  permission  to  take  them  to  the  seacoast. 
The  faithful  natives  of  inner  Africa  waited  for  the  re- 
turn of  their  master  near  the  banks  of  the  Zambezi, 
close  to  the  sea.  Livingstone  went  home,  received  due 
honor  for  what  he  had  done,  and  returned  to  Africa. 
He  took  up  his  march  back  and  made  journeys  and 
finally  died  in  Ilala,  at  the  southern  end  of  Lake  Bang- 
weolo.  But  if  you  look  at  the  illustration  of  his  route 
you  will  see  that  it  is  the  rude  figure  of  the  cross. 
And  now  you  may  be  able  to  draw  the  moral  point  I 
bave  to  tell  you.  You  have  asked  me  what  have  been 
the  causes  of  missionaries  being  imperiled.    Wherever 


DAVID  LIVINGSTONE  33 

that  good  man  went  he  was  received.  A  few  rejected 
him,  but  the  majority  listened  to  him  calmly  and 
kindly,  and  some  of  them  felt  quite  ready  to  be  of  his 
profession  and  of  his  belief.  But  the  words  that  he 
dropped  were  similar  to  those  of  the  angels  heard 
over  Bethlehem,  '  Peace  on  earth,  good  will  to  men.' 
On  the  other  hand,  in  northern  Africa  it  was  an  at- 
tempt to  invade  by  violence,  and  it  failed,  and  there 
was  not  one  that  had  the  courage  to  step  out  of  the 
ranks  and  press  on.  They  returned.  But  this  lone 
missionary  pressed  on  and  on  until  he  had  drawn  the 
rude  figure  of  a  cross  on  the  southern  continent  of 
Africa,  and  then  he  said  with  his  dying  words :  *  All 
I  can  add  in  my  loneliness  is,  May  Heaven's  rich 
blessing  come  down  on  everyone  —  American,  Eng- 
lish, Turk  —  who  will  help  to  heal  this  open  sore  of 
the  world.'  And  the  '  cross  turns  not  back.'  The  open 
sore  will  be  healed.    Africa  will  be  redeemed." 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY 


35 


GEORGE   LESLIE   MACKAY,  D.D. 

1844-1901 

BY  SECRETARY  R.    P.    MACKAY,  D.D. 

Parentage  and  Early  Years.  —  i.  His  Parents, 
—  In  the  year  1830  there  settled  in  Oxford  County, 
Ontario,  a  group  of  families  from  Sutherlandshire, 
in  the  Highlands  of  Scotland,  who  loved  their  Bibles, 
reverenced  the  Sabbath  and  were  loyal  to  the  sanc- 
tuary. The  family  altar  was  established  in  every  home. 
Morning  and  evening  were  the  chapter  read  and  the 
psalm  sung,  parents  and  children  joining  heart  and 
voice  in  the  worship  of  Almighty  God.  These  were  the 
melancholy  days  in  Scotland  known  as  the  "  Suther- 
landshire Clearances,"  when  hundreds  of  tenant- 
farmers,  as  loyal  and  true  as  ever  breathed  on  British 
soil,  were  driven  from  their  homes  to  make  way  for 
sheep-farms  and  deer-parks.  They  were  heroic  spirits. 
They  came  to  Canada,  hewed  out  for  themselves  com- 
fortable homes,  and  transmitted  to  their  children  that 
best  of  all  legacies,  a  hallowed  memory. 

2.  Birth  and  Early  Influences.  —  George  Leslie 
Mackay  was  born  into  one  of  these  homes  on  March  21, 
1844.  From  that  one  congregation  of  Scottish  High- 
landers from  which  he  came  fifty  others  entered  the 
gospel  ministry  and  exercised  gifts  that  had  been  kin- 
dled and  inspired  in  such  early  and  wholesome  environ- 

37 


38  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS   IN    NEEDY  FIELDS 

ments  as  these.  Modern  hymns  were  unknown  in  these 
quarters  at  that  time.  Nor  did  the  question  of  the 
Davidic  origin  of  the  Psalms  ever  arise.  In  the  strict- 
est and  most  hteral  sense  the  Bible  was  accepted  as  an 
inspired  Book,  a  veritable  sword  from  the  hand  of  God 
put  into  the  hand  of  man  for  the  conquest  of  the  world 
for  Christ.  Such  was  the  soil  from  which  Dr.  Mackay 
sprang  and  the  food  upon  which  he  was  fed.  It  put 
iron  into  his  blood  and  enabled  him  for  thirty  years 
to  face  the  foe  without  a  question  or  doubt  as  to  the  final 
victory.  The  Lord  had  spoken,  and  it  was  not  for  him 
to  make  reply.  He  sought  implicitly  to  obey  a  command 
from  which  there  is  no  appeal. 

3.  Personal  Appearance.  —  He  was  rather  under  the 
medium  height,  compactly  built,  deep-chested  and  of 
swarthy  complexion.  His  eagle  eye  was  mild  and 
benevolent  except  when  kindled  with  righteous  in- 
dignation, as  when,  for  example,  discussing  the  treat- 
ment accorded  to  the  Chinese  by  so-called  Christians  in 
America.  Then  his  intensity  was  unrestrained.  He 
sometimes  lost  control  of  himself  and  became  painfully 
violent.  He  inherited  a  hardy,  healthy  constitution, 
which  was  never  weakened  by  irregular  habits  and 
proved  capable  of  extraordinary  endurance  when  se- 
verely tested,  as  will  appear  in  the  story  of  his  life. 

His  Education.  —  i.  About  half  a  mile  from  his 
father's  home  stood  what  is  still  remembered  in  that 
neighborhood  as  the  old  log  schoolhonse.  It  certainly 
was  not  an  attractive  building.  It  was  small  and  looked 
as  if  it  might  have  been  old  when  it  was  built.  The 
timbers  were  unhewn  and  were  "  chunked  "  with  wood 
and  clay,  the  floor  was  rough  and  irregular,  and  the 
seat  was  the  flat  side  of  a  split  basswood  log  supported 


GEORGE   LESLIE    MACKAY  39 

on  wooden  pins.  The  curriculum  was  not  so  elaborate 
as  in  modern  schools.  It  consisted  chiefly  of  the  "  three 
R's  "  with  the  addition  of  the  Shorter  Catechism,  which 
was  memorized  there.  The  teaching-  was  good  as  far 
as  it  went  and  was  duly  emphasized  by  the  liberal  use 
of  the  birch  rod.  The  canonical  leather  tawse  was 
never  known  in  the  old  log  schoolhouse,  perhaps  be- 
cause wood  was  so  plentiful  and  hence  was  easily  re- 
plenished. After  teaching  in  the  public  school  for  a 
time  in  order  to  earn  the  means  with  which  to  proceed, 
he  began  his  classical  studies  in  the  Woodstock  Gram- 
mar School  with  a  view  to  the  ministry.  He  after- 
wards took  what  was  then  known  as  the  "  Preparatory 
Literary  Course "  in  Knox  College,  Toronto,  which 
was  regarded  as  the  equivalent  of  a  three  years'  course 
in  the  Toronto  University.  He  never  graduated  in 
Arts.  Like  many  other  Canadian  students  of  thirty 
years  ago,  he  took  his  theological  course  in  Princeton 
Seminary  in  New  Jersey,  attracted  thither  by  the  repu- 
tation of  Dr.  Charles  Hodge,  to  whom  he  ever  after- 
ward referred  with  deepest  reverence. 

2.  Habits  of  Study.  —  The  only  thing  memorable 
about  him  as  a  student  was  his  devotion  to  his  work. 
His  early  advantages  were  not  such  as  to  enable  him 
easily  to  take  a  commanding  position  in  the  wider  cur- 
riculum of  a  university,  but  the  disadvantages  of  early 
training  were  compensated  for  by  intense  application 
and  a  determination  to  succeed.  That  habit  of  close, 
careful  study  was  never  discontinued.  To  the  end  of 
life,  when  the  care  and  responsibilities  of  a  whole  mis- 
sion were  upon  him,  he  burned  the  midnight  oil.  He 
had  a  passion  for  accurate  information  in  every  depart- 
ment of  accessible  knowledge.    The  readers  of  "  From 


40  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

Far  Formosa  "  will  remember  the  large  space  given  to 
the  geological,  zoological,  botanical  and  ethnological 
history  of  the  island.  When  that  book  was  in  prepara- 
tion and  it  was  suggested  that  these  more  technical 
chapters  might  be  inserted  as  an  appendix,  he  was  sur- 
prised and  could  not  yield  to  the  proposal.  To  him 
they  were  of  all  chapters  the  most  interesting.  They 
were  the  field  of  his  life  study  and  delight.  He  was 
not  only  an  accurate  student  of  science,  but  he  contin- 
ued a  devoted  one  to  the  end  of  his  days ;  and  to  that 
in  a  large  measure  the  freshness  of  his  teaching  and 
the  unflagging  interest  of  his  students  were  due. 

3.  Memories  of  his  student  life  in  the  Grammar 
School  and  at  Knox  College  are  not  associated  with  the 
college  quartette  and  ball  team  but  with  the  study. 
They  who  knew  him  well  can  still  recall  the  wiry,  silent 
lad  of  serious  mien,  with  raven  hair,  worn  somewhat 
long,  and  rapid  pace,  passing  rapidly  to  and  fro  day 
after  day  between  boarding  house  and  school.  It  was 
the  quiet  determination  of  a  man  bound  to  win  against 
all  odds,  and  win  he  did.  He  was  an  apostle  of  hard 
work.  Dr.  Livingstone's  last  advice  to  children  in  Eng- 
land was,  "  Pray  and  work  hard."  Mackay  acted  upon 
that  principle,  and  he  is  thus  an  example  and  an  in- 
spiration to  every  student  who  wishes  to  make  life  a 
success  in  spite  of  obstacles. 

4.  After  graduation  at  Princeton  he  visited  Scotland 
and  came  under  the  influence  of  Dr.  Alexander  Duff, 
who  at  that  time  was  delivering  in  Scottish  Colleges  a 
course  of  lectures  on  missions  under  the  name  of  Evan- 
gelistic Theology.  In  the  veins  of  teacher  and  pupil 
was  the  throb  of  Highland  fire,  a  fire  consecrated  to 
holy  purposes.     After  the  course  of  lectures  was  fin- 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  4I 

ished  in  Edinburgh,  he  followed  his  illustrious  teacher 
to  Aberdeen.  Duff,  seeing  him  present,  gave  this  char- 
acteristic introduction  to  his  class :  "  Gentlemen,  here 
is  my  friend  from  Canada,  bound  for  a  heathen  land. 
Show  him  that  there  are  loving  hearts  in  this  Granite 
City."  A  few  days  later,  when  leaving  the  City  of 
Aberdeen  Duff  bade  him  farewell  on  the  street  with 
such  a  grip  of  the  hand,  such  a  look  in  his  eye  and  such 
words  of  encouragement  and  hope  as  made  an  abiding 
impression  on  a  young  heart  as  responsive  and  ardent 
as  his  own.  Had  Duff  been  able  to  appreciate  the  latent 
possibilities  of  that  modest,  reticent  youth  who  was  just 
putting  on  his  armor,  he  would  not  have  been  less 
cordial,  but  would  have  felt  for  the  youth  the  reverence 
with  which  he  himself  was  regarded. 

Mackay's  Appointment.  —  He  was  determined  to 
go  to  the  foreign  field  and  offered  his  services  to  his 
own  Church,  although  not  with  much  hope  of  accept- 
ance. The  Presbyterian  Church  in  Eastern  Canada, 
known  as  the  Maritime  Provinces,  had  established  a 
mission  in  1848  in  the  New  Hebrides  group.  Dr.  John 
Geddie,  another  of  the  Church's  heroes,  was  their  first 
missionary.  But  those  were  the  days  before  the  union 
of  the  churches  in  Canada.  In  the  western  section  of 
the  Church  there  had  been  a  Foreign  Mission  Com- 
mittee for  sixteen  years,  though  without  a  foreign  mis- 
sionary. Some  work  had  been  done  in  British  Colum- 
bia and  on  the  Saskatchewan,  partly  among  Europeans 
and  partly  among  the  Indians,  and  this  was  called  for- 
eign mission  work.  The  Committee  had  made  attempts 
to  found  a  really  foreign  mission,  but  had  been  un- 
successful. On  one  or  two  occasions  men  accepted 
the  call  of  the  Committee,  but  their  Presbyteries  re- 


42  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

fused  to  release  them  from  congregations.  The  time 
was  at  hand,  Mackay  had  offered  his  services  and 
the  Committee  decided  to  recommend  his  appointment 
to  the  General  Assembly.  He  received  a  letter  to  that 
effect  when  in  Scotland,  written  by  the  Convenor  of 
the  Committee,  the  Rev.  Professor  MacLaren,  and  im- 
mediately with  a  bounding  heart  he  returned  to  meet 
the  Assembly.  He  was  appointed  and  designated  to 
China,  although  the  particular  quarter  was  left  to  his 
own  decision  after  reaching  the  field. 

Characteristics. — i.  Intensity  in  Home  Agitation. 
—  It  has  been  said  that  the  power  of  a  preacher  con- 
sists chiefly  in  the  intensity  of  his  beliefs.  The  words 
that  move  men  are  the  words  of  burning  conviction, 
the  whole-hearted  and  unwavering  faith  in  the  cen- 
tral verities  of  the  gospel.  That  appeared  in  every 
utterance  from  Mackay,  whether  by  voice  or  pen.  His 
correspondence,  as  will  appear,  was  glowing  with  a 
white  heat.  When  a  student  missionary  in  Ontario 
before  his  appointment  to  China,  his  intensity  never 
cooled.  After  his  appointment  he  visited  many  con- 
gregations and  felt  the  chill ;  it  was  to  his  ardent  spirit 
like  a  cold  plunge.  They  called  him  an  excited  young 
man ;  he  called  them  "  the  ice  age  "  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church  in  Canada.  But  from  that  day  the 
thermometer  began  to  rise.  To  letters  sent  home  by 
him,  specimens  of  which  we  shall  see,  and  to  annual 
reports  of  his  wonderful  work  is  largely  due  the  im- 
proved condition   in  this   land. 

His  first  furlough  was  taken  in  1881,  ten  years  after 
he  had  gone  forth,  not  knowing  whither  he  went.  His 
return  was  expected  with  much  interest,  but  the  ef- 
fects of  that  visit  far  surpassed  all  expectations.     He 


GEORGE   LESLIE    MACKAY  4J 

went  through  the  Church  Hke  a  whirlwind,  and  his 
reception  was  everywhere  an  ovation.  On  that  occa- 
sion the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  was  conferred 
upon  him  by  Queen's  University,  Kingston.  His  sec- 
ond and  only  other  visit  to  his  native  land  was  made 
twelve  years  later.  During  the  intervening  years  the 
Church  had  become  somewhat  familiar  with  mission- 
aries and  their  story,  so  that  the  excitement  was  less 
intense;  yet  he  never  fell  one  degree  in  the  estimation 
of  the  Church  which  he  represented.  Although  he 
never  sat  in  a  General  Assembly  in  his  life,  apprecia- 
tion was  expressed  by  unanimously  electing  him  to  the 
moderator's  chair,  the  highest  honor  of  his  Church. 

2.  Social  Qualities.  —  He  could  scarcely  be  de- 
scribed as  social.  Reserved  even  among  his  friends, 
among  strangers  he  was  often  silent.  He  could 
scarcely  be  induced  to  take  part  in  mission  or  other 
conferences,  even  where  his  influence  might  have 
been  widely  felt.  His  life  work  might  have  been  en- 
larged, had  he  been  able  to  give  the  benefit  of  his 
personality  and  experience  more  freely  to  other  equally 
faithful,  if  less  gifted,  fellow  laborers.  But  he  was 
not  so  constituted.  He  had  an  affectionate  nature. 
He  loved  in  after  years  to  trace  the  record  of  the  com- 
panions of  his  boyhood.  He  was  an  intense  Canadian 
and  devotedly  loyal  to  the  British  flag.  Yet  he  mar- 
ried a  Chinese  wife,  identified  himself  with  the  Chi- 
nese people  and  loved  them  as  his  own.  That  uni- 
versality of  sympathy  would  have  given  him  accept- 
ance with  any  people  and  would  have  found  its  way 
to  their  hearts.  He  had  a  tender,  transparently  sin- 
cere and  lovable  nature,  and  he  was  most  loved  by 
those   who   knew   him   best. 


44  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS   IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

Off  to  China.  —  This  was  not  so  easy  a  matter  in 
1871,  as  it  is  in  1902.  There  were  no  through  tickets, 
palatial  steamers,  obliging  agencies  nor  frequent  fur- 
loughs. Little  was  known  of  far-away  China  by  the 
ordinary  reader,  and  books  were  comparatively  few. 
To  say  farewell  to  aged  parents  and  other  friends  was 
a  more  bitter  experience  then  than  now.  Thirty  years 
have  wrought  a  wonderful  change.  But  it  had  to 
be.  On  the  nineteenth  of  October,  1871,  he  went  forth, 
with  no  weapons  or  guides  other  than  the  Word  of 
God  and  his  own  voice,  which  are  after  all  the  two 
essential  weapons  in  successful  Warfare  anywhere. 
The  Word  without  the  voice  God  has  not  largely  used, 
nor  yet  the  voice  without  the  Word ;  but  when  the 
living  Word  is  upon  lips  that  have  been  touched  with 
a  living  coal  from  off  the  altar,  we  have  God's  in- 
strument and  something  is  going  to  be  done.  Dr. 
Duff  learned  that  lesson  on  the  way  to  India,  when  his 
Bible  was  the  only  one  of  all  his  books  that  was  saved 
from  the  wreck.  Mackay  had  an  interesting  use  to 
which  to  put  his  Bible  on  the  way  to  San  Francisco, 
whence  he  was  to  sail  for  Hongkong.  Traveling  by 
different  railroads  he  had  to  negotiate  for  special  rates 
with  each.  At  Omaha  the  agent  looked  at  him  doubt- 
fully and  asked  for  his  credentials.  He  had  none  and 
for  a  moment  was  nonplussed,  but  he  quickly  thought 
of  his  Bible,  presented  by  the  Foreign  Mission  Com- 
mittee at  his  ordination  with  its  inscription.  He  pro- 
duced that,  and  it  was  accepted  as  satisfactory.  Al- 
though not  in  exactly  the  same  way,  the  Book  was 
ever  his  defense  and  plea.  He  went  forth  like  Abra- 
ham, not  knowing  whither  he  went  but  relying  on  the 
words  "  Go  ye,"  and  "  Lo,  I  am  with  you  always." 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  45 

There  was  absolutely  no  other  confidence,  whether  in 
self-defense  or  to  lift  men  out  of  the  fearful  pit,  in 
Christian  or  in   non-Christian   lands. 

Choice  of  a  Field.  —  When  the  Foreign  Mission- 
ary Committee  were  discussing  the  field  before  Mac- 
kay's  designation,  they  had  entered  into  correspond- 
ence with  different  mission  boards  and,  among  others, 
with  the  Board  of  the  English  Presbyterian  Church, 
which  had  a  flourishing  mission  in  South  Formosa 
and  in  Swatow  and  Amoy  on  the  mainland.  These 
missionaries  cordially  welcomed  him  and  strongly 
urged  the  claims  of  the  Swatow  district.  He  had  no 
instructions  from  home  and  no  definite  convictions ; 
but  he  felt  some  unseen  influence  directing  his  atten- 
tion to  Formosa,  and  Formosa  he  felt  that  he  must 
see  before  a  decision  could  be  reached.  He  arrived 
at  Ta-kow  and  spent  a  month  with  the  missionaries 
there.  He  learned  that,  although  a  prosperous  mis- 
sion had  been  established  in  South  Formosa  in  1865, 
nothing  had  been  done  in  the  north.  Wishing  not  to 
build  upon  another  man's  foundation,  he  eventually 
decided  upon  North  Formosa  as  the  scene  of  his  life 
work.  "  In  all  thy  ways  acknowledge  him,  and  he 
shall  direct  thy  paths."  Never  was  promise  more 
gloriously  fulfilled,  as  the  event  amply  revealed. 

Formosa!  —  i.  The  name  means  "beautiful"  and 
was  first  applied  by  the  Portuguese,  when  viewing 
the  precipitous  cliffs  and  cloud-piercing  mountain 
peaks  of  the  eastern  coast.  To  Canadians  familiar 
with  Mackay's  accent  and  fervid  exclamations,  "  Beau- 
tiful Formosa  "  is  a  characteristic  phrase.  His  love 
for  the  natural  scenery  of  the  island  was  only  second 
to  his  love  for  the  people  and  their  eternal  welfare.   ^, 


46  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

2.  Physical  Features.  —  Formosa  lies  off  the  east 
coast  of  China,  opposite  the  Fo-kien  Province,  and  is 
about  ninety  miles  from  the  mainland.  It  is  about 
250  miles  from  north  to  south,  and  its  greatest  width 
is  about  eighty  miles.  It  is  about  one-half  the  size 
of  Scotland.  Through  the  center  of  the  island  runs 
a  mountain  range  which  at  its  highest  point  reaches 
an  elevation  of  13,000  feet.  These  mountains  are  cov- 
ered to  their  summits  with  dense  vegetation,  of  which 
rattan  and  innumerable  ferns  form  a  striking  feature. 
To  the  west  these  mountains  sink  into  a  rich  alluvial 
plain,  traversed  by  rivers  forming  important  water- 
ways for  purposes  of  trade  and  travel.  On  the  eastern 
side  of  the  island  the  plain  is  narrower  and  is  inter- 
sected by  mountain  spurs  running  out  to  the  water's 
edge.  The  streams  here  are  more  violent,  cutting 
deep  ravines  through  a  bold  rocky  shore  that  rises  in 
some  places  to  a  height  of  7,000  feet,  presenting 
scenery  of  rare  magnificence  and  beauty.  "  Domes 
and  peaks  and  wall-like  precipices  succeed  each  other 
in  striking  variety.  A  brilliant  verdure  clothes  their 
sides,  down  which  dash  cascades  that  shine  like  silver 
in  the  tropical  sunlight."  The  northern  part  of  the 
island  is  more  varied  in  character,  and  it  terminates 
in  bold  headlands  with  an  occasional  harbor,  although 
there  are  few  good  ones  on  the  island. 

3.  Inhabitants.  —  The  original  inhabitants  were 
Malayan,  belonging  to  the  same  family  as  the  Filipi- 
nos farther  south.  The  Chinese  crossed  over  from  the 
mainland,  driving  the  aborigines  back  into  the  moun- 
tains and  taking  possession  of  their  fertile  plains. 
They  brought  with  them  their  own  customs  and  re- 
ligion and  are  an  industrious  people  with  unchanged 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  47 

Chinese  characteristics.  They  came  chiefly  from  the 
province  of  Fo-kien  and  are  called  Hok-los.  A  few 
crossed  over  from  Canton  Province  and  are  called 
Hak-kas  or  Strangers.  Many  of  the  aborigines  in  the 
eastern  plains  accepted  the  Chinese  civilization  and  are 
called  Pe-po-hoans,  or  barbarians  of  the  plains.  In 
another  plain  farther  south,  they  are  called  Lami-si- 
hoan,  or  barbarians  of  the  south.  The  unsubdued 
aborigines  of  the  mountains  are  called  Chhi-hoan  or 
raw  barbarians.  A  few  who  are  settled  among  the 
Chinese  in  the  western  plain  are  called  Sek-hoan  or 
ripe  barbarians.  The  social  condition  of  the  aborigines 
is  very  low.  They  have  savage  feuds  among  them- 
selves and  are  at  perpetual  war  with  their  Chinese 
neighbors,  who  robbed  them  of  their  heritage.  A 
sense  of  rude  justice  causes  them  to  attach  great  vir- 
tue to  the  capture  of  a  Chinese  head,  and  the  warrior 
whose  hut  is  decorated  with  the  greatest  number  of 
Chinese  skulls  is  admired  by  all.  They  have  all  the 
instincts  of  the  hunter  and  live  largely  by  it,  although 
to  a  small  extent  husbandry  is  carried  on,  the  women 
doing  the  greater  part  of  the  work. 

4.  Formosan  Products.  —  Coal  is  very  abundant, 
but  on  account  of  the  violent  upheavals  of  past  ages 
the  strata  are  so  broken  and  displaced  as  to  make  min- 
ing operations  difficult  and  unprofitable.  Natural 
gas  and  petroleum  are  found  in  different  sections, 
and  sulphur  is  plentiful  and  forms  an  important  re- 
source. Camphor  wood  is  abundant,  and  the  cam- 
phor industry  was  once  of  great  value.  Tea  is  one 
of  the  principal  agricultural  products,  and  rice  is  so 
largely  cultivated  that  Formosa  has  been  called  the 
granary  of   China. 


48  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

5.  Its  Climate.  —  The  southern  half  of  the  island 
is  within  the  tropics.  The  rainfall  is  very  great  dur- 
ing January  and  February,  but  during  other  months 
of  the  year  as  well  heavy  rainfalls  are  common.  This 
great  amount  of  moisture  and  the  tropical  sun  cause 
rapid  and  rank  vegetation.  Flowers  bloom  from  Jan- 
uary to  December,  and  foliage  is  renewed  as  fast  as 
it  decays.  This  rapid  growth  and  decay  accounts  for 
the  deadly  malarial  fever  with  which  the  island  is 
afflicted,  and  which  is  so  extremely  trying  to  for- 
eigners. 

6.  Dutch  Supremacy.  —  In  the  fifteenth  and  six- 
teenth centuries,  colonizing  power  was  in  the  hands 
of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church.  While  sometimes 
the  missionary  led  the  way,  ordinarily  the  Church 
waited  until  the  way  was  opened  by  national  and  com- 
mercial considerations.  By  papal  decree  Spain  fell 
heir  to  America,  and  the  rest  of  the  world  was  con- 
ferred upon  the  Portuguese.  After  the  rise  of  the 
Dutch  Republic  and  escape  from  the  tyranny  of  Spain 
a  new  era  dawned.  The  Dutch  became  the  possessors 
of  the  world-wide  dependencies  of  the  Portuguese,  and 
missionaries  were  sent  by  them  to  look  after  the  re- 
ligious affairs  of  the  natives,  as  Governors  were  sent 
to  take  charge  of  the  civil  and  political  affairs.  The 
Dutch  were  the  first  to  convert  theory  regarding  mis- 
sions into  practice.  In  1612  they  founded  a  seminary 
at  Leyden  for  the  training  of  men  who  could  be  sent 
as  missionaries  to  their  colonial   possessions. 

The  Dutch  Occupation.  —  i.  Dutch  Missions. — 
It  was  in  1624  that  the  Dutch  East  India  Company 
took  possession  of  Formosa,  and  on  the  fourth  of  May, 
1627,  Rev.  George  Candidius  landed,  the  first  mis- 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  49 

sionary.  He  entered  immediately  and  ardently  upon 
the  study  of  the  language  and  religion  of  the  natives 
and  laid  the  foundations  of  a  successful  mission.  Ten 
years  later  Rev.  Robert  Junius  was  appointed  to  assist 
him,  and  subsequently  thirty  other  ordained  mission- 
aries were  appointed  and  labored  for  longer  or  shorter 
periods  during  the  thirty-seven  years  of  the  Dutch  oc- 
cupation of  the  island.  That  a  great  work  was  done 
by  these  good  men  is  unquestioned,  although  the  fol- 
lowing quotation  from  a  letter  written  home  to  the 
Classis  in  Amsterdam  suggests  a  doubtful  policy : 
"  Our  brother,  the  Rev.  Robert  Junius,  has  baptized 
in  their  six  villages  upward  of  5,400  persons ;  of 
whom  all  that  are  living  —  with  the  exception  of  the 
young  children  —  repeat  fluently  the  '  Law  of  God,' 
the  '  Articles  of  God,'  the  '  Articles  of  Belief,'  the 
'  Lord's  Prayer,'  the  '  Morning  and  Evening  Prayers,' 
the  '  Prayers  before  and  after  Meals  '  and  the  '  Ques- 
tions concerning  the  Christian  Religion,'  which  is  a 
catechism  Mr.  Junius  will  show  to  you." 

In  Ceylon  a  similar  policy  was  adopted  by  the  Dutch 
missionaries.  They  established  free  and  compulsory 
schools  and  seminaries  for  the  training  of  native 
teachers  and  preachers,  and  in  the  year  1722  they 
claimed  424,392  native  Christians.  In  the  year  1795, 
when  the  British  took  possession  and  granted  free- 
dom on  religious  matters,  the  native  Christians  fell 
away,  so  that  in  1806  Reformed  Christianity  became 
extinct.  Such  is  the  result  of  the  use  of  formulas, 
instead  of  insisting  upon  change  of  heart,  knowledge  of 
the  Scriptures  and  Christian  life  and  work.  Yet  many 
of  these  men  were  devout  and  consecrated,  and  their 
contribution  to  the  world's  evangelization  was  great. 


50  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

2.  The  Dutch  Expulsion.  —  The  Ming  Dynasty  was 
supplanted  by  the  present  Manchu-Tatar  Dynasty  in 
1644.  The  pirate  Koxinga  refused  allegiance  to  the 
usurpers,  collected  a  large  fleet,  swept  the  seas  and 
gained  tens  of  thousands  of  adherents.  But  the  Tatars 
were  too  strong  for  him.  He  left  the  mainland  and 
besieged  the  Dutch  in  Sakam,  which  afterward  became 
Tai-wan-fu,  the  capital  of  Formosa.  The  siege  lasted 
for  nine  months,  but  it  ended  in  the  surrender  of  the 
garrison  and  the  evacuation  of  the  island  in  1662. 
The  Church  was  exterminated,  the  only  trace  being 
a  translation  of  the  gospel  of  St.  Matthew  in  the  For- 
mosan  language. 

3.  Dutch  Heroism.  —  Hambrock,  a  Dutch  mission- 
ary, was  taken  prisoner  with  others  by  Koxinga,  who 
sent  him  to  the  garrison  with  conditions  of  surrender. 
His  wife  and  children  were  held  by  the  pirate  as  hos- 
tages, and  he  was  told  that  unless  he  persuaded  the 
garrison  to  surrender,  vengeance  would  be  taken  upon 
the  other  prisoners.  Instead  of  persuading  them  to 
surrender,  Hambrock  assured  them  that  Koxinga  had 
lost  many  of  his  ships  and  was  weary  of  the  siege 
and  encouraged  them  to  hold  out.  After  the  council 
of  war,  it  was  left  to  him  whether  he  should  remain 
with  the  garrison,  or  return  with  the  certain  prospect 
of  death.  His  two  daughters,  who  were  in  the  gar- 
rison, clung  to  his  neck  and  entreated  him  to  remain. 
He  said  that  nothing  but  death  could  come  to  his  wife 
and  two  children  if  he  remained,  and  unlocking  him- 
self from  his  daughters'  arms  and  exhorting  all  to  a 
resolute  defense  he  returned  to  his  captivity.  Koxinga 
received  his  report  sternly  and  carried  out  his  threat. 
The  male  prisoners  were  slain  in  a  barbarous  man- 


George  leslie  mackay  51 

ner  to  the  number  of  500;  some  of  the  women  and 
children  were  slain;  others  were  appropriated  by  the 
officers;  and  the  rest  were  sold  to  the  common  sol- 
diers. 

4.  A  Consecrated  Island.  —  Although  North  For- 
mosa was  virgin  soil,  for  the  Dutch  missionaries  did 
their  work  in  the  South,  yet  the  island  had  been  oc- 
cupied and  consecrated  by  the  blood  of  the  saints. 
There  was  no  distinction  between  north  and  south 
in  the  hearts  of  these  saintly  men,  who  200  years  be- 
fore had  included  all  Formosa  in  their  prayers  and 
had  cried  unto  God  day  and  night  for  the  salvation 
of  the  whole  island.  It  is  not,  therefore,  accurate  to 
credit  any  man  in  the  nineteenth  century  with  being 
the  first  missionary  to  Formosa.  Other  men  labored, 
and  Mackay  entered  into  their  labors.  Sowers  and 
reapers    shall    rejoice   together. 

Beginning  Work.  —  i.  The  spirit  in  which  he  en- 
tered upon  his  work  is  revealed  in  a  letter  written 
a  few  weeks  after  he  had  fixed  upon  North  Formosa 
as  his  field  of  labor.  "  I  am  shut  out  from  fellowship 
with  Christian  brethern,  yet  I  am  not  lonely  nor  alone. 
I  feel  my  weakness,  my  sinfulness,  my  unfaithful- 
ness. I  feel  sad  as  I  look  around  and  see  nothing 
but  idolatry  and  wickedness  and  all  the  abominations 
of  heathenism  on  every  hand,  and,  alas  !  alas  !  for  those 
from  Christian  lands.  I  can  yet  tell  little  about  Jesus, 
and  with  stammering  tongue.  What  can  I  do  ?  Noth- 
ing; but,  blessed  thought,  the  Lord  Jesus  can  do  all 
things.  He  alone  can  comfort  a  poor  worm  of  the 
dust.     Jehovah  is  my  refuge  and  strength." 

2.  The  First  Home.  —  The  only  available  house  had 
been  built  for  a  stable  into  the  side  of  a  hill  with  the 


52  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

river  in  front,  and  for  this  $15  a  month  was  charged. 
Two  pine  boxes  with  their  contents  constituted  his  en- 
tire outfit.  A  chair  and  bed  were  loaned  by  the  Brit- 
ish Consul,  and  a  pewter  lamp  was  presented  by  the 
friendly  Chinese.  The  house  was  whitewashed,  and 
the  walls  were  decorated  with  newspapers.  Then  he 
settled  down  to  work  with  the  consciousness  that,  as 
recorded  in  his  diary,  he  had  been  led  thither  by  the 
Master  as  directly  as  if  his  boxes  had  been  checked 
for  Tamsui. 

3.  Learning  the  Language.  —  Every  true  mission- 
ary feels  that  the  best  work  can  never  be  done  with- 
out a  working  knowledge  of  the  language  of  the  people 
to  whom  he  is  sent.  Mackay  believed  that  any  mis- 
sionary unwilling  to  undergo  the  labor  of  acquiring 
the  language  is  a  doubtful  appointment.  During  ths 
first  month  spent  in  South  Formosa  he  improved  his 
time  and  mastered  the  eight  tones.  His  Chinese  serv- 
ant became  his  first  teacher,  but  he  had  not  been  ac- 
customed to  such  work.  Hearing  a  man  making  ab- 
surd attempts  by  the  hour  at  imitation  of  sounds  that 
to  himself  seemed  perfectly  simple  suggested  doubts 
as  to  the  sanity  of  his  pupil.  After  a  few  weeks  the 
servant-teacher  suddenly  vanished  and  never  again  re- 
appeared. 

Like  any  sensible  man  determined  to  speak  Chinese, 
Mackay  avoided  all  English  speaking  citizens  of  Tam- 
sui. He  cultivated  the  companionship  of  boys  herd- 
ing water  buffalo,  and  from  them  he  gathered  the 
vocabulary  of  the  common  people  and  at  the  same  time 
studied  the  Chinese  character  with  such  indifferent 
appliances  as  were  at  hand.  Thus,  through  constant 
use  of  what  had  been  acquired  and  the  daily  acquisi- 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  53 

tion  of  new  words,  at  the  end  of  five  months  he 
preached  his  first  sermon  on  the  text,  "  What  must  I 
do  to  be  saved  ?  "  The  boys  ever  after  continued  to 
be  his  friends  and  loved  to  recall  the  experiences  of 
former  years.  One  of  them,  as  he  wrote  eleven  years 
later,  became  a  student  in  Oxford  College  and  entered 
the  gospel  ministry.  Mackay  became  a  fluent  Chinese 
speaker  and  prepared  a  dictionary  of  10,000  words, 
twenty  copies  of  which  were  prepared  by  the  students 
for  their  own  use.  All  these  copies  were  destroyed 
during  the  French  invasion  in  1885.  The  dictionary 
was  afterward  printed  and  is  still  of  service  in  the 
mission. 

4.  The  Religions  of  China.  —  Next  in  importance 
to  a  knowledge  of  the  language  of  the  Chinese  did  he 
regard  a  knowledge  of  their  religion,  in  order  that 
he  might  understand  their  viewpoint.  Professor  Max 
Miiller  affirms  that  "  no  judge,  if  he  had  before  him 
the  worst  criminal,  would  treat  him  as  historians  and 
theologians  have  treated  the  religions  of  the  world." 
Common  honesty  demands  that  a  missionary  acquaint 
himself  with  the  religions  with  which  he  has  to  deal. 
Only  then  can  he  do  them  justice  and  find  common 
ground.  Mackay  longed  for  more  "  common  ground  " 
and  made  use  of  what  he  had.  When  breaking  new 
territory  he  often  began  his  address  by  quoting  the 
Fifth  Commandment,  which  at  once  commended  itself 
to  ancestor-worshipping  Confucianists.  "  There  are 
scattered  rays  of  light  in  every  land  and  many  beauti- 
ful gems  of  thought."  It  is  the  wisdom  of  the  Chris- 
tian missionary  to  recognize  truth  wherever  it  is  found 
and  to  show  that  these  fragments  of  truth  are  united 
and  perfected  and  personified  in  Him  who  is  the  Truth 


54  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

and  the  Life.  As  soon  as  he  was  able  to  converse  with 
the  Chinese,  the  necessity  of  this  knowledge  was  ap- 
parent. He  was  visited  in  his  stable-home  by  literati 
who  contemptuously  challenged  discussion,  and  he 
was  compelled  to  give  a  reason  for  the  faith  that  was 
in  him.  Many  of  these  Chinese,  like  the  Athenians 
of  old,  spent  their  days  in  seeking  something  new, 
and  Mackay  spent  his  nights  in  mastering  Confucian 
wisdom,  that  he  might  put  his  antagonists  to  con- 
fusion. Not  many  days  were  passed  before  the  lead- 
ing positions  were  mastered  and  the  literati  found  it 
convenient  to  avoid   debate. 

5.  The  First  Convert.  —  Among  his  first  visitors 
was  a  young,  prepossessing  and  intelligent  man  named 
Giam  Chheng-hoa.  He  returned  again  and  again, 
bringing  groups  of  literati  with  him  that  he  might 
hear  a  full  discussion  of  the  merits  of  the  new  doc- 
trine as  contrasted  with  their  own  three  religions, 
Confucianism,  Buddhism  and  Taoism.  The  literati 
were  repeatedly  confounded,  and  after  they  had  finally 
withdrawn,  A  Hoa  returned  and  confessed  his  con- 
viction that  this  was  the  true  doctrine,  declaring  his 
own  determination  to  be  a  Christian  if  it  should  cost 
him  his  life.  Mackay  had  been  praying  that  his  first 
convert  might  be  a  young  man  of  suitable  gifts  for 
companionship  in  this  ministry.  The  prayer  was 
abundantly  answered.  A  Hoa  proved  such  a  man. 
He  was  the  son  of  a  poor  widow  but  had  been  sent  to 
school  until  he  was  seventeen  years  of  age.  He  had 
also  traveled  on  the  mainland,  having  spent  six  years 
in  Peking,  and  was  thus  prepared  by  former  training 
for  the  commanding  position  of  influence  among  his 
own  people  to  which  he  afterward  attained.     He  be- 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  55 

came  Mackay's  constant  companion  and  his  language 
teacher,  while  he  himself  was  being  taught  geography, 
astronomy,  history  and  especially  the  Word  of  God. 
A  Hoa  was  not  only  a  loyal  friend  who  on  more  than 
one  occasion  was  instrumental  in  saving  the  life  of  his 
teacher,  but  he  also  became  an  effective  preacher. 
Mackay  was  heard  to  say  that  rarely  had  he  heard 
Canadian  preachers  who  could  influence  a  Canadian 
audience  as  A  Hoa  could  move  a  congregation  of  his 
own  countrymen.  He  is  also  gifted  with  sound  judg- 
ment and  has  been  much  used  in  adjusting  differ- 
ences between  Christians  and  the  civil  authorities. 

Planting  Churches.  —  i.  Every  convert  is  ex- 
pected to  be  a  missionary.  That  seems  to  be  more 
noticeably  true  in  heathen  than  in  Christian  lands. 
In  Formosa  churches  have  sprung  into  being  through 
the  personal  influence  of  individuals,  who  have  carried 
the  message  of  life  to  their  friends.  The  first  out- 
station  was  started  by  a  widow  named  Thah-so,  who 
heard  the  Gospel  in  Tamsui  and  found  in  it  a  balm 
to  her  weary  soul.  Her  home  was  in  Go-ko-khi,  a  vil- 
lage ten  miles  up  the  river.  She  came  back,  bringing 
others  with  her.  The  interest  continued,  so  that  a  boat- 
load would  come  down  the  river  to  attend  religious 
services.  They  then  persuaded  the  missionary  and  A 
Hoa  to  visit  them,  and  soon  the  foundations  of  a 
church  were  laid.  The  prefect  of  Bang-kah  sent  a  com- 
pany of  soldiers  to  terrify  the  natives  and  stop  the 
work.  Tan  Phauh,  the  head-man  of  the  village,  a 
man  of  generous  physique,  who  had  seen  active  service 
on  the  mainland,  feared  not  the  bluster  of  soldiers,  told 
them  frankly  that  he  was  done  with  idols  and  wa5 
going  to   live  according  to   the   Ten   Commandants, 


56  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

which  he  had  pasted  on  the  walls  of  his  house.  They 
then  threatened  the  widow  Thah-so,  but  she  held  up  her 
hymn-book  and  declared  her  purpose  to  live  by  that. 
The  soldiers  left  the  village,  declaring  that  the  "  foreign 
devil "  had  bewitched  them  all.  The  church  was  built, 
and  about  150  declared  their  rejection  of  idols  and 
their  desire  for  instruction  and  worship.  In  this  first 
chapel,  A  Hoa,  the  first  convert,  was  the  first  preacher, 
and  Thah-so,  the  widow,  the  first  female  convert,  was 
his  chief  helper. 

2.  At  Sin-tiam,  which  lies  eighteen  miles  inland  irom 
Tamsui,  the  church  was  founded  through  the  influence 
of  Tan-he,  a  modest  young  farmer  who  heard  the 
gospel  at  Tamsui  and  interested  others  who  came  to 
see  and  hear  for  themselves.  Eventually  the  mis- 
sionary visited  the  town  on  a  festal  day,  as  it  happened, 
when  large  multitudes  were  on  the  streets.  Most  of 
them  had  never  seen  a  foreigner,  and  the  violence  of 
a  mob  was  averted  by  an  accident  which  inflicted  an 
ugly  wound  on  a  boy's  head.  Mackay  dressed  flie 
wound  and  bound  it  with  his  own  handkerchief.  Im- 
mediately the  tide  was  turned ;  sympathy  succeeded 
hatred,  and  soon  a  congregation  was  gathered  and  or- 
ganized. The  present  church  in  Sin-tiam  is  one  of  the 
finest  in  North  Formosa.  Tan-he,  who  had  become 
a  student,  was  its  faithful  pastor  until  the  day  of  his 
death.  Sometimes  mission  premises,  at  first  established 
outside  the  towns,  were  destroyed  by  typhoons,  and 
new  buildings  were  erected  within  the  towns,  the 
people  in  the  meantime  having  become  more  friendly. 
Thus  the  work  developed  and  grew,  not  according  to 
any  preconceived  or  detailed  plan,  but  under  the  leading 
of  the  Holy  Spirit. 


GEORGE   LESLIE   MAC  KAY  57 

The  Taking  of  Bang-kah.  —  i.  One  of  the  most 
thrilling  chapters  in  "  From  Far  Formosa  "  bears  the 
title  of  this  paragraph.  Bang-kah  was  the  Gibraltar 
of  heathenism  in  North  Formosa.  It  is  not  only  the 
largest  and  most  important  city,  but  it  was  also  the 
most  determinedly  anti-foreign.  Foreign  merchants 
had  never  succeeded  in  establishing  themselves  there, 
although  frequent  attempts  had  been  made.  The 
authorities  of  the  city  had  sent  emissaries  to  the  sur- 
rounding villages  and  towns,  inciting  the  people 
against  the  missionary  and  his  work.  Nevertheless  the 
time  had  come  when  Bang-kah  must  be  taken.  Mac- 
kay  succeeded  in  renting  a  low  hovel  and  placed  over 
the  door  a  tablet  with  the  words,  "  Jesus'  Holy 
Temple."  Immediately  the  city  was  in  an  uproar. 
The  military  authorities  brought  evidence  to  prove  that 
the  site  belonged  to  them,  and  he  had  to  abandon  his 
claim.  He  left  and  after  prayer  with  his  students  re- 
turned the  same  night  and  succeeded  in  renting  another 
place.  The  mob  tore  that  building  to  pieces,  even  car- 
ried away  the  stones  of  the  foundation.  He  and  his 
students  moved  across  the  street  to  an  inn  which  was 
immediately  assailed  by  the  mob,  when  in  their  ex- 
tremity the  British  Consul  from  Tamsui  with  the 
Chinese  mandarin  appeared  on  the  scene.  The  Consul 
demanded  that  as  a  British  subject  the  missionary  be 
protected. 

2.  Mackay  insisted  upon  erecting  upon  the  same  site 
another  building,  a  small  chapel  which  was  dedicated 
while  soldiers  paraded  the  streets  to  preserve  the  peace. 
Seven  years  thereafter  a  handsome  stone  church  was 
built  in  Bang-kah,  with  a  stone  spire  seventy  feet  high 
and  with  rooms  for  the  native  preacher  and  missionary. 


-58  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

Ten  years  later,  in  1893,  when  Dr.  Mackay  was  on  the 
eve  of  returning  to  Canada,  the  people  of  Bang-kah 
asked  the  privilege  of  honoring  him  by  carrying  him 
through  the  streets  of  the  city  in  a  sedan  chair.  He 
recoiled  from  such  a  parade,  but  he  concluded  that  as 
in  the  past  they  had  done  to  him  as  they  chose,  he 
would  allow  them  to  follow  their  own  inclination. 
A  procession  was  formed,  consisting  of  head-men, 
magistrates  and  military  officials,  bands  of  music, 
flags,  footmen,  all  that  the  Chinese  conception  of  glory 
could  suggest,  to  confer  honor  upon  the  man  who  some 
years  before  had  defied  their  authority  and  was  to  them 
the  impersonation  of  evil.  The  heathen  may  rage,  but 
He  who  sits  in  heaven  shall  hold  them  in  derision. 
The  taking  of  Bang-kah  is  typical  of  the  determination 
and  courage  and  faith  that  pressed  on  until  smitten  by 
the  hand  of  death. 

Training  of  Students.  —  i.  A  Peripatetic  School. 
—  A  self-sustaining,  self-governing  and  self-propag- 
ating church  demands  an  educated  ministry.  Mackay 
from  the  very  beginning  began  to  select  the  most  cap- 
able young  men  and  train  them  for  this  work.  A  Hoa, 
the  first  convert,  was  thus  utilized,  and  the  number 
steadily  increased  until  sixty  native  preachers  were  em- 
ployed in  ministering  to  as  many  native  congregations. 
In  the  early  days  of  the  mission  the  students  ac- 
companied him  on  his  evangelistic  trips,  and  they  were 
taught  by  the  way.  Under  a  tree  or  by  the  seashore, 
or  in  the  chapels,  they  received  instruction  in  geog- 
raphy, astronomy,  church  history,  anatomy,  physi- 
ology, etc.,  but  chiefly  in  Bible  truth.  Most  of  these 
students  traveled  with  him  barefooted  up  the  steeps, 
or  through  the  mountain  passes,  and  across  fields  and 


GEORGE   LESLIE    MACKAY  59 

extensive  plains.  The  advent  of  a  procession  of  as  many 
as  twenty  students,  headed  by  their  teacher,  would 
of  itself  excite  interest  in  the  numberless  hamlets  and 
towns  through  which  they  passed.  After  each  day's 
study  was  over  the  students  had  their  opportunity  of 
declaring  to  others  the  truths  which  they  had  been 
studying  for  themselves,  and  an  audience  was  never 
wanting.  After  the  mission  grew  to  larger  proportions 
and  a  college  had  been  established,  this  more  primitive 
method  of  instruction  was  largely  discontinued  and  no 
doubt  more  continous  and  thorough  work  was  done  in 
the  educational  center.  Nevertheless,  there  was  a 
charm  and  romance  about  these  peripatetic  days  to 
which  Mackay  ever  looked  back  with  longing  affection. 
Although  much  was  gained,  there  was  a  distinct  loss 
when  the  students  became  confined  within  college 
walls. 

2.  Oxford  College.  —  When  at  home  on  his  first 
furlough  Mackay's  addresses  did  much  to  stimulate 
interest  throughout  the  Canadian  Presbyterian  Church. 
The  enthusiasm  was  such  that  the  people  of  his  own 
county,  Oxford,  Ontario,  presented  him  on  the  eve 
of  his  return  with  $6,215,  for  the  erection  of  an  edu- 
cational institution  to  be  known  as  Oxford  College. 
It  was  built  under  his  own  supervision  at  Tamsui,  on  a 
beautiful  site  about  200  feet  above  the  river.  It  is  a 
commodious  building  with  accommodations  for  fifty 
students  and  two  teachers  and  their  families,  and  it  is 
supplied  with  necessary  appliances,  such  as  class- 
rooms, museum,  library,  and  bath-room  and  kitchen 
conveniences.  The  opening  of  the  College  was  a  great 
day  in  Formosa.  There  were  about  1,500  present. 
Every  European  in  Tamsui  was  there.     The  building 


6o  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

was  decorated  with  British  flags  from  the  consulate 
and  customs,  and  two  distinguished  mandarins  in  their 
sedan  chairs  graced  the  occasion.  There  were  many 
addresses  of  congratulation,  and  interesting  remin- 
iscences of  the  struggles  and  joys  of  the  past  were 
rehearsed.  One  native  preacher  spoke  almost  regret- 
fully of  the  days  when  in  the  class  rooms  "  they  had 
the  starry  heavens  for  a  roof,  the  earth  and  sandy 
beach  and  tender  grass  for  a  floor,  the  mountains  and 
seas  for  the  walls  of  their  habitation,  the  rocks  for 
tables  and  chapel  benches  for  beds." 

Special  pains  have  been  taken  to  beautify  the  college 
grounds  with  a  profusion  of  trees,  shrubs  and  flowers. 
When  it  is  remembered  that  flowers  bloom  in  Formosa 
for  twelve  months  in  the  year,  the  possibility  of  this 
without  great  labor  or  expense  is  manifest.  On  the 
grounds  there  are  over  1,200  evergreens,  besides  hun- 
dreds of  banians  and  blooming  oleanders,  and  they  are 
surrounded  by  hedges  of  privet  and  hawthorne.  Stu- 
dents who  have  visited  Princeton  will  not  forget  the 
old  trees  and  avenues  and  campus  and  all  the  delight- 
ful associations  of  those  beautiful  surroundings.  Dr. 
Mackay,  himself  a  student  of  Princeton,  no  doubt  re- 
membered and  was  in  a  measure  under  the  influence 
of  that  historic  spot,  when  he  labored  to  beautify  this 
one  educational  center  in  North  Formosa.  This  was 
not,  however,  simply  to  please,  but  it  was  regarded  as 
a  necessary  part  of  the  college  education.  He  found 
the  Chinese  deficient  in  appreciation  of  the  beauties 
of  nature.  Even  A  Hoa,  a  young  man  of  exceptional 
natural  ability,  was  quite  insensible  to  the  charms  of 
beautiful  Formosa  in  the  midst  of  which  he  had  been 
born  and  educated.    Mackay  beautifully  describes  how 


GEORGE   LESLIE    MACKAY  6l 

one  morning  he  led  A  Hoa  up  the  side  of  the  Quan-yin 
Mountain,  1,700  feet  above  the  sea,  and  there  wit- 
nessed the  awakening  of  his  dormant  powers.  A  Hoa 
at  first  could  not  understand  the  motive  in  making  so 
difficult  an  ascent.  As  they  stood  gazing  upon  the 
magnificent  panorama  of  sea  and  land,  and  as  they 
sang  together  the  One  Hundredth  Psalm,  an  invisible 
hand  touched  the  eyes  so  long  closed,  and  he  saw.  It 
was  to  A  Hoa  a  mount  of  transfiguration,  an  apoca- 
lyptic vision  of  a  hitherto  unseen  world.  Ever  after 
he  was  an  ardent  observer  and  student  of  the  beauties 
of  nature. 

3.  Method  of  Teaching.  —  The  curriculum  of  the 
College  included  the  subjects  ordinarily  taught  in  our 
colleges  with  the  exception  of  classical  studies.  The 
amount  of  work  done  in  each  department  was  neces- 
sarily limited,  but  so  far  as  it  went,  it  was  thoroughly 
practical  and  intelligent.  The  true  teacher  excites  in 
his  pupils  thirst  for  knowledge  and  enthusiasm  for  his 
theme.  Dr.  Mackay  possessed  certain  important  char- 
acteristics for  a  successful  teacher.  He  was  always 
animated  and  impatient  of  dullness  in  the  class-room. 
Weariness  was  relieved  by  change  of  subject,  and  often 
in  the  peripatetic  classes  of  early  years  they  would 
scatter  and  collect  specimens  of  rock  or  plant  or  insect, 
or  amuse  themselves  like  children  for  a  time,  and  then 
return  to  their  studies  refreshed.  Sleepiness  was  an 
unpardonable  sin  in  college  work.  He  was  perpetual 
and  inexorable  in  review.  Simple  memorizing  was  not 
enough.  The  subject  must  be  understood.  This  was 
discovered  by  cross-examination  and  drill.  The  ex- 
pectation of  such  minute  and  daily  examination  kept 
the  students  up  to  work  and  in  readiness  for  what  was 


62  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

to  come.  He  attached  more  importance  to  the  cultiva- 
tion of  memory  and  recitation  in  the  class-room  than 
is  usual  in  colleges.  Large  sections  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment and  the  New  were  memorized.  In  early  years 
two  hours  each  evening  during  the  session  were  given 
up  largely  to  recitation.  Women  and  girls  from  the 
Girls'  School  came  into  the  college  hall  and  occupied 
the  center  seats.  The  students  sat  in  seats  along  the 
sides  of  the  hall,  and  before  that  audience  the  students 
acquitted  themselves  as  best  they  could. 

Sometimes  a  debate  was  the  program  of  the  evening, 
at  other  times,  a  student  or  a  Bible-woman  would 
recite  the  whole  of  the  Shorter  Catechism.  Some  of 
the  students  could  recite  the  whole  collection  of  Psalms 
and  Hymns  in  use  in  the  mission.  He  recognized  that 
many  highly  educated  ministers  failed  because  they 
could  not  deliver  their  message  effectively ;  the  public 
would  not  listen  to  them.  Hence  he  insisted  upon  the 
importance  of  correct  speaking,  readiness  and  self- 
possession  before  an  audience.  Unhappy  mannerisms 
or  affectations  were  mercilessly  exposed  and  corrected, 
and  both  teacher  and  students  took  part  in  criticising 
such  class-room  performances. 

Special  mention  needs  to  be  made  of  his  museum 
as  an  educational  factor.  Nowadays  in  college  work 
text-books  are  becoming  of  less  and  less  consequence. 
The  laboratory  and  quarry  and  dissecting  room  and 
archives  are  taking  their  places.  The  student  must 
do  independent  work  and  develop  his  own  individuality. 
He  ought  not  to  be  an  echo  of  any  man,  however  great. 
That  was  the  use  Dr.  Mackay  made  of  his  museum 
which  is  one  of  the  finest  collections  in  the  East.  The 
microscope  was  in  constant  use,  and  the  hidden  wondef?> 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  63 

and  beauties  of  the  works  of  God,  whether  in  stone  or 
shell  or  insect  or  plant,  were  thus  disclosed.  Every 
student  was  constantly  looking  out  for  new  things, 
which  not  only  added  to  the  museum,  but  also  cul- 
tivated in  himself  the  capacity  for  seeing  the  world 
about  him,  which  so  many  have  never  seen. 

4.  Music.  —  He  was  not  musical  but  had  a  passion 
for  music.  In  youthful  days  he  labored  diligently  to 
learn  but  without  much  success.  In  this  respect  he 
was  not  unlike  D.  L.  Moody.  There  was  music  in  his 
soul,  and  he  loved  to  hear  other  voices  give  expression 
to  it.  In  College  classes  exercises  were  frequently 
relieved  by  the  singing  of  hymns.  When  surrounded 
by  an  enraged  mob,  he  and  his  students  would  lift  up 
their  voices  in  the  words  of  the  old  familiar  para- 
phrase, — 

"  I'm  not  ashamed  to  own  my  Lord, 
Or  to  defend  His  cause," 

which  would  thrill  their  own  souls  with  new  strength, 
and  overawe  their  foes.  When  by  the  bedside  of  the 
dying,  he  sang  hymns  of  joy  and  faith  and  victory,  in 
which  the  suffering  saint  often  joined  and  during  the 
singing  of  which  sometimes  the  spirit  took  its  flight. 
He  took  full  advantage  of  the  Chinese  fondness  for 
music  as  a  means  of  imparting  gospel  truth.  Evening 
hours  were  spent  in  the  chapels  teaching  the  people 
to  sing  gospel  hymns,  much  after  the  fashion  of  sing- 
ing-schools in  rural  communities  of  Canada  a  gen- 
eration ago.  "  The  Devil  can't  sing ;  prayer  and  song 
and  work  will  keep  the  Devil  at  bay,"  said  John 
Stuart  Blackie. 

"  The  Devil  remains  a  stranger 
To  breasts  that  teem  with  song." 


64  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

Certain  it  is  that  music  finds  little  place  in  heathen 
worship.  It  is  a  Christian  grace,  the  natural  expres- 
sion of  the  joy  of  the  gospel. 

Mackay's  Marriage.  —  i.  A  Dutch  View.  —  Rev. 
G.  Candidius,  when  pleading  in  1628  for  the  appoint- 
ment of  another  missionary  to  Formosa,  wrote :  "  He 
should  bring  out  a  wife  with  him,  that  he  may  escape 
the  snares  of  Satan  and  may  with  his  family  be  unto 
the  people  as  a  mirror  and  living  example  of  an  honest, 
virtuous  and  proper  life.  But  for  several  reasons  a 
much  better  arrangement  would  be  for  him,  being  un- 
married, to  take  to  wife  one  of  the  native  women.  It 
would  also  be  very  expedient,  were  ten  or  twelve  of  our 
countrymen  to  take  up  their  abode  in  the  island  —  per- 
sons of  good  and  virtuous  conduct  not  without  means 
and  inclined  to  marry  the  native  women  of  the  place. 
These  would  be  the  magnets  that  would  attract  the 
whole  country ;  and  in  this  way  the  undertaking  would 
succeed  and  God  would  grant  his  blessing  thereon." 

2.  Dr.  Mackay's  Argument.  —  While  he  did  not  ad- 
vocate the  latter  colonizing  suggestion,  with  the 
former  he  agreed  not  only  in  theory  but  in  practice. 
He  wrote  home  in  December,  1877,  to  the  Committee: 
"  I  have  been  for  a  long  time  grieved  at  heart  to  see 
the  women  here  despised  and  left  within  their  homes, 
whilst  husbands  and  brothers  attend  services.  I  have 
pleaded  and  prayed  and  wept.  Sometimes  amongst 
200  hearers  only  two  or  three  women  are  present. 
Such  being  the  case,  after  long  and  prayerful  consider- 
ation, I  have  determined,  God  willing,  to  take  a 
Chinese  lady  to  become  my  helpmeet,  and  labor  for 
these  perishing  thousands.  She  is  a  young,  devoted, 
earnest  Christian  who  will,  I  believe,  labor  until  death 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  65 

for  the  salvation  of  souls.  My  great  motive  in  this  is 
that  I  may  be  more  instrumental  in  the  salvation  of 
souls.  I  cannot  reach  that  class  myself,  and  as  I  be- 
lieve that  Chinese  and  Canadians  are  alike  in  the 
presence  of  our  Lord,  I  act  accordingly.  It  matters 
nothing  to  me  what  some  people  may  think,  if  I  can 
only  win  more  souls,  and  I  think  I  can.  Brother  R. 
just  sent  me  a  note  saying  there  are  '  charming  ladies 
in  Canada,  one  of  which  would  come  out  as  my  help- 
meet.' I  am  not  thinking  about  '  charming  ladies.' 
I  am  thinking  how  I  can  do  most  for  Jesus.  This  is 
a  trying  climate  for  foreign  ladies.  A  foreign  lady 
cannot  live  in  the  chapels  in  the  country,  and  she  can- 
not reach  the  women  by  living  in  the  port.  This  lady 
can  go  from  chapel  to  chapel  and  thus  gather  perishing 
souls." 

Men  have  criticized  his  action  but  all  will  admire 
the  consecrated  purpose  of  his  life.  In  May,  1878,  he 
was  married  by  the  British  Consul  at  Tamsui,  to  Tui 
Chhang  Mia,  a  Chinese  lady  who  proved  equal  to  his 
expectations.  She  was  a  devoted  and  loving  wife  and 
helper  until  the  day  of  his  death.  He  never  found 
occasion  to  regret  his  unusual  and  independent  action. 

3.  The  Wedding  Trip.  —  Immediately  after  his  mar- 
riage he  returned  to  the  country  to  visit  the  stations 
with  his  young  bride.-  He  wrote :  "  At  every  station 
women  who  never  entered  the  chapel  before  attended 
and  listened  as  she,  sitting  amongst  them,  told  the 
story  of  redeeming  love.  Women  who  had  formerly 
attended  but  seemed  afraid  to  come  forward,  now  took 
their  places  confidently  by  her  side.  Having  visited 
all  the  northern  stations  except  Kelung,  we  started 
south  and  arrived  at  Liong  Lik  drenched  with   rain 


66  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

and  with  blistered  feet.  On  the  following  day  we 
were  again  overtaken  with  pouring  rain.  Mrs.  Mackay 
was  blown  off  the  chair  in  which  she  was  borne  and 
the  men  who  were  carrying  her  were  prostrated  beside 
the  muddy  path.  We  reached  a  chapel  in  the  evening 
and  it  was  ample  compensation  for  our  slight  incon- 
veniences to  witness  such  prosperity  in  the  work.  In 
the  evening  quite  a  number  of  women  were  present, 
and  after  worship  Mrs.  Mackay  spent  an  hour  in 
teaching  them  to  sing  several  hymns.  We  travelled 
over  beds  of  burning  sand  and  under  scorching  sun. 
Mrs.  Mackay  went  from  house  to  house  exhorting 
the  women  to  attend  the  service,  and  the  result  was 
gratifying."  The  heavy  rains  swelled  the  mountain 
torrents,  and  they  had  to  cross  several  such  streams 
in  order  to  reach  their  destination.  The  first  two  were 
easily  waded,  but  they  barely  escaped  being  carried 
away  in  the  third.  Having  finished  their  visitation  of 
the  churches,  they  returned  from  a  notable  wedding 
journey  which  left  memories  more  precious  than  such 
trips  usually  do. 

Girls'  School.  —  Religious  interest  excited  among 
the  women  led  to  the  erection  of  a  school  building  for 
their  education.  The  Girls'  School  stands  beside  the 
College  at  Tamsui  within  the  same  grounds,  and  the 
two  buildings  are  of  equal  dimensions.  Social  condi- 
tions in  Formosa  would  not  allow  young  women  to 
leave  their  homes  and  reside  in  a  boarding  school  as 
in  America,  but  when  accompanied  by  a  senior  relative 
it  is  quite  proper  to  do  so.  There  are  therefore  in  the 
school  married  and  single  women,  both  young  and  old, 
prosecuting  their  studies  together.  Sometimes  the 
husband  is  a  student  in  the  College  and  his  wife  a  pupil 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  67 

in  the  Girls'  School  at  the  same  time.  Mrs.  Mackay, 
assisted  by  two  matrons,  took  charge  of  the  school, 
and  the  progress  made  was  sometimes  phenomenal. 
One  girl  in  a  single  month  learned  to  read  the  Bible  in 
the  Romanized  colloquial  with  considerable  fluency 
and  correctness.  Many  in  attendance  are  the  daughters 
of  preachers  and  elders,  and  they  have  become  valuable 
helpers  as  wives  and  workers  in  the  churches.  At 
certain  periods  in  the  history  of  the  mission  from  thirty 
to  forty  women  were  employed  as  Bible  women,  but 
the  unsettled  state  of  the  country  for  some  time  made 
it  necessary  to  discontinue  such  service. 

The  French  Invasion. —  i.  In  Formosa.  —  In 
1884  war  broke  out  between  China  and  France  over  a 
boundary  line  in  Tonquin.  The  invasion  of  Formosa 
by  the  French  was  the  occasion  of  much  suffering  and 
loss  to  the  mission.  Chinese  hatred  of  all  foreigners 
immediately  asserted  itself,  and  the  missionary  and  his 
converts  were  in  the  public  mind  associated  with  the 
French  invaders.  As  soon  as  the  first  shot  was  fired, 
bands  of  looters,  who  had  nothing  to  loose,  persecuted, 
tortured  and  robbed  defenceless  Christians.  Many 
were  slain,  refusing  to  purchase  deliverance  by  denial 
of  their  Lord.  Many  chapels  were  destroyed  and 
everywhere  the  derisive  shout  was  heard  that  "  the 
mission  was  wiped  out."  At  one  station,  Tao-liong- 
pong,  the  chapel  was  demolished,  a  huge  mound  was 
erected  with  the  debris  which  was  plastered  with  mud, 
and  upon  it  was  inscribed  in  Chinese  characters  the 
epitaph,  "  Mackay,  the  black-bearded  devil,  lies  here. 
His  work  is  done."  The  labors  and  anxieties  of  this 
invasion  brough  on  a  severe  illness.  When  Tamsui 
was  besieged,  all  foreigners  were  asked  to  go  aboard 


68  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

a  British  man-of-war,  with  their  famiUes  and  valuables, 
for  protection.  This  Mackay  declined  to  do.  His  con- 
verts were  his  valuables,  and  he  would  suffer  and,  if 
need  be,  die  with  them.  Later  his  wife  and  children, 
and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jamieson,  associates  for  a  time  in 
the  mission,  went  to  Hongkong,  but  he  remained  be- 
hind. 

2.  However,  an  acute  attack  of  cerebral  meningitis, 
during  which  his  life  was  despaired  of  for  a  time,  made 
a  change  necessary.  He  boarded  the  steamer  Fukien 
to  take  the  round  trip  to  Amoy,  but  before  his  return 
Tamsui  was  blockaded  and  he  was  shut  out.  He  had 
to  remain  until  the  following  May  in  Hongkong.  Let- 
ters written  at  that  time  were  full  of  lamentations  on 
account  of  enforced  absence  from  his  beloved  church 
in  its  time  of  trial.  He  wrote :  "  I  know  I  could  render 
little  assistance,  that  chapels  are  levelled  to  the  ground 
and  work  suspended ;  that  many  converts  have  been 
plundered  and  slain ;  that  my  presence  might  only 
excite  deeper  hatred;  but  O,  to  be  there  and  die,  if 
need  be,  with  the  poor  people  for  whose  salvation  I 
have  had  the  privilege  of  laboring  so  long!  It  makes 
me  tremble  to  think  of  Romish  priest-craft  in  dear 
beloved  Formosa,  should  the  French  take  possession 
and  hold  it."  During  this  enforced  absence  he  was 
not  idle.  Two  of  his  students  were  with  him,  and  their 
studies  were  continued.  This  was  a  comfort  in  the 
midst  of  those  days,  which  he  described  as  the  most 
trying,  of  all  his  experiences  in  Formosa. 

3.  In  Captivity.  —  After  the  blockade  was  raised 
and  he  was  allowed  to  return  to  Formosa,  preparations 
were  made  to  visit  the  churches  on  the  east  coast. 
Armed  with  a  letter  from  the  British  Consul  to  the 


GEORGE    LESLIE    MACKAY  69 

Commander-in-chief  of  the  French  forces  and  ac- 
companied by  two  preachers,  A  Hoa  and  Lap-Sun,  he 
proceeded  to  Kehmg.  There  were  8,000  French  sol- 
diers at  Kelung,  and  they  were  harassed  by  twice  as 
many  Chinese  troops  who  were  drilled  by  German 
officers.  The  French  mistaking  him  for  a  German 
spy,  he  and  his  companions  narrowly  escaped  being 
shot.  The  soldiers  blindfolded  them,  led  them  through 
the  lines  and  sent  them  on  board  a  man-of-war.  As 
soon  as  he  was  identified,  courteous  treatment  was  ex- 
tended, and  the  next  morning  they  were  set  at  liberty. 
They  then  proceeded  to  visit  the  afflicted  churches  in 
the  Kap-su-lan  plain  and  rejoiced  to  find  that  suf- 
fering only  bound  them  more  closely  to  Jesus  Christ. 

Building  Churches.  —  i.  As  soon  as  the  war  was 
over,  he  presented  claims  amounting  to  $10,000  (Mexi- 
can) as  indemnity  for  damage  done  to  mission  property. 
Without  reference  to  Peking  or  investigation,  these 
claims  were  allowed  and  the  money  paid.  The  problem 
now  was,  how  best  to  spend  so  large  an  amount.  "  I 
could  with  that  amount  build  two  dozen  fragile 
churches,"  he  wrote,  "  or  one  dozen  ordinary  churches, 
or  one-half  dozen  strong  and  artistic  churches."  He 
decided  upon  the  latter  course,  set  to  work  and  in  less 
than  three  months  finished  three  splendid  churches  of 
solid  stone  with  a  stone  wall  around  each,  at  the  three 
principal  stations,  Bang-kah,  Sin-tiam  and  Sek-khan. 

2.  They  have  towers  and  spires  of  solid  masonry 
from  seventy  to  eighty  feet  high,  with  the  British  flag 
and  burning  bush  in  stucco  on  the  spires.  They  are 
conspicuous  buildings  in  these  towns,  and  cannot  be 
hid.  But  why  spend  money  on  spires?  This  action  has 
been  questioned  by  neighboring  missionaries  in  South 


70  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

Formosa.  His  reply  was  that,  in  the  first  place,  the 
heathen  were  thus  convinced  of  the  folly  of  destroying 
the  former  buildings,  when  they  saw  better  ones  spring 
up  in  their  places ;  secondly,  they  gave  visibility  to  the 
church  of  Christ  and  impressed  the  heathen  with  a 
sense  of  permanence;  thirdly  and  chiefly,  they  refuted 
the  Chinese  superstition  called  feng-shni,  which  means 
an  indefinable  something  that  they  think  will  be  dis- 
turbed if  a  building  rises  above  the  regulation  height 
of  surrounding  buildings.  These  spires  pointing 
heaven-ward,  overtopping  heathen  temples  and  no  dis- 
aster resulting,  are  a  perpetual  and  unanswerable  re- 
futation of  this  absurd  superstition.  Of  the  sixty 
churches  in  the  mission,  only  six  were  of  this  durable 
and  to  the  Chinese  imposing  style  of  architecture. 

Labors  Abundant.  —  i.  His  energy  and  powers  of 
endurance  seemed  almost  preternatural.  While  super- 
intending the  work  of  200  men,  employed  on  the  erec- 
tion of  these  churches,  he  dispensed  medicines  to  hun- 
dreds, preached  daily,  taught  the  students  at  night  and 
in  the  three  months  traveled  1,600  miles  on  foot.  In 
additon,  during  these  three  months  he  repaired  two 
other  chapels  and  opened  another  new  station  in  a 
large  town. 

2.  His  Defense.  —  In  188 1  the  funds  of  the  Com- 
mittee were  low,  and  a  letter  was  sent  to  him  advising 
the  utmost  economy.  He  was  evidently  annoyed  and 
wrote  in  reply :  "  I  thought  I  was  exercising  economy 
to  the  utmost  of  my  ability,  perhaps  beyond  it.  I  put 
up  three  strong  churches  in  as  many  months,  followed 
by  three  more  in  about  the  same  time  and  one  more 
in  exactly  one  month.  I  worked  as  a  laborer,  traveled 
as  a  coolee  under  sun  and  rain,  carrying  on  and  super- 


GEORGE   LESLIE    MACKAY  J I 

intending  this  work,  working  at  night  so  as  not  to 
interrupt  teaching,  guiding  and  supervising  the  whole 
mission.  I  thus  saved  the  mission  by  actual  computa- 
tion about  $3,000.    All  for  Christ." 

A  member  of  the  mission  at  that  time,  perfectly  fam- 
iliar with  his  methods  and  work,  wrote  that  during 
these  three  months  he  traveled  daily  over  twenty  miles, 
never  using  a  chair  because  that  would  increase  ex- 
pense. The  same  writer,  in  speaking  of  his  versatility 
and  resourcefulness,  stated  that  when  toiling  outside 
all  day,  building  chapels,  he  was  in  the  habit  of  giving 
the  students  in  the  course  of  a  few  hours  at  night  as 
much  as  kept  them  busy  during  the  following  day. 
Not  only  were  the  students  in  attendance  at  the  Col- 
lege led  through  systematic  courses  of  study  and  kept 
steadily  at  work  for  months,  but  preachers  scattered 
over  the  field  were  also  kept  at  work.  They  regularly 
sent  the  results  of  their  labor  to  him,  and  he  personally 
examined  them.  Natives  who  had  been  his  com- 
panions for  many  years  expressed  amazement  at  his 
resourcefulness. 

A  Hoa,  who  had  been  his  companion  for  sixteen 
years,  according  to  this  correspondent,  stated  that 
although  he  had  often  heard  him  choose  the  same 
subject,  he  had  never  known  him  to  give  the  same 
address  twice.  His  teaching  from  the  living  Word 
was  living,  always  nourishing,  —  newly  beaten  oil,  of 
which  his  hearers  never  wearied.  Busy  from  daylight 
to  dark,  with  patients,  converts  from  the  country,  cor- 
respondence from  the  stations,  mandarin  cases  and  a 
thousand  and  one  other  things,  when  did  he  make  his 
preparation  ?  Much  of  it  was  made  when  others  slept. 
He  required  but  three  or  four  hours'  sleep  out  of  the 


72  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

twenty-four.  Foreigners  in  port  often  made  their  way 
to  his  house,  and  letters  appreciative  of  such  visits 
were  received  from  distant  parts  of  the  world.  Such 
appreciation  came  from  those  who  knew  him  and  his 
work  at  short  range. 

Times  of  Refreshing.  —  i.  He  wrote  on  the  thir- 
tieth of  March,  1883:  "I  am  on  the  east  coast,  four 
days  journey  from  Tamsui.  Fully  1,000  have  thrown 
away  their  idols  and  wish  to  be  taught  Christianity. 
I  have  dried  my  clothes  before  fires  made  of  idolatrous 
paper  and  idols,  and  employed  three  men  to  carry  other 
idols  to  my  museum  in  Tamsui.  I  never  passed  through 
such  experiences.  Hallelujah!  Blessed  be  God,  Jesus 
reigns !  O,  the  scenes  of  these  days !  Now  I  am  ready 
to  depart.  I  have  seen  the  glory  of  God ! "  A  few 
weeks  later  came  from  him  the  following  cablegram, 
"  One  thousand  aborigines  threw  idols  away."  Some 
weeks  later  he  wrote :  "  My  cablegram  was  below  the 
mark.  Upward  of  2,000  have  thrown  away  their  idols 
and  wish  to  follow  the  Lord  of  Hosts.  I  am  just  back 
from  that  region;  what  a  scene!  What  an  outburst 
when  they  sang, 

"  How  sweet  the  name  of  Jesus  sounds 
In  a  believer's  ear." 

"  In  a  village  of  upward  of  200,  every  soul  wants  to  be 
a  Christian.  Every  house  is  cleansed  of  idols.  Another 
village  of  300  came  out  as  a  body.  They  sang  sweet 
hymns  late  into  the  night.  Most  of  the  people  biive 
to  work  hard  for  a  living.  One  village  will  give  150 
days'  labor,  another  100  days',  etc.,  to  help  in  putting 
up  chapels.  I  sent  nine  of  the  older  preacher;  to  work 
among  them." 


GEORGE   LESLIE   MACKAY  73 

2.  In  March,  1886,  he  spent  with  A  Hoa  ten  days 

on  the  eastern  coast.  He  wrote :  "  We  visited  eighteen 
stations.  A  typhoon  destroyed  several  churches.  I 
mostly  preached  in  the  open  air  under  a  burning  sun. 
We  baptized  1,138  —  all  converts  who  would  have  been 
baptized  sooner  but  for  the  French  invasion.  We 
ordained  thirty-eight  elders  and  forty-two  deacons." 
These  trips  to  the  villages  were  his  chief  delight  as 
can  easily  be  imagined,  and  they  were  as  frequent  and 
prolonged  as  College  and  other  duties  permitted.  One 
visit  was  paid  to  points  on  the  eastern  coast,  where  he 
had  never  been,  but  from  which  he  had  an  invitation 
of  twelve  years'  standing.  The  military  officer  pro- 
vided a  pony,  "  which  was  plump  if  not  fiery,"  with  the 
usual  string  of  bells.  On  this  he  rode  for  a  week, 
visiting  the  whole  plain  and  preceded  by  an  official 
groom.  He  found  many  of  the  villages  ripe  for  de- 
cisive action.  Multitudes  were  assembled  to  hear  him, 
and  he  challenged  them  to  give  up  their  idols  there 
and  then.  Boys  were  sent  around  with  baskets  to 
gather  up  their  idols,  mock  money,  incense  sticks,  etc., 
for  a  bonfire.  They  vied  with  each  other  in  kindling 
the  pile.  One  chief  took  special  delight  in  poking 
the  burning  objects  of  worship,  while  roars  of  laughter 
followed  the  pulling  out  and  holding  up  a  blazing  God- 
dess of  Mercy.  An  idol  temple,  which  had  been  built 
by  themselves  at  a  cost  of  $2,000,  was  handed  over 
for  Christian  worship.  That  day  about  500  idolaters 
cleansed  their  houses  of  idols  and  began  the  worship 
of  the  true  God.  No  wonder  that  beautiful  Formosa 
was  dear  to  his  soul  and  that  such  scenes  were  cherished 
memories !  But  he  fully  recognized  that  the  work  was 
only  begun,  when  the  idols  were  destroyed.     Hence 


74  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

the  importance  of  a  ministry  that  could  build  these 
converts  up  in  faith  and  holiness,  and  to  the  develop- 
ment of  such  a  ministry  his  best  days  were  devoted. 

Medical  Work.  —  i.  His  Preparation,  —  Before 
Mackay's  theological  studies  had  been  begun,  he  had 
spent  some  time  in  the  study  of  anatomy  and  phy- 
siology. His  medical  studies,  it  is  true,  were  very 
incomplete,  but  they  proved  of  great  service  in  the 
mission.  The  long  experience  of  thirty  years  in  the 
midst  of  a  trying  climate  and  much  sickness  could  not 
fail  to  result  in  considerable  skill,  especially  when  the 
missionary  was  a  devoted  student  of  books  as  well 
as  of  men.  Malaria  is  so  prevalent  in  Formosa  that 
it  is  not  an  infrequent  thing  to  find  whole  families 
prostrated  at  the  same  time.  He  himself  was  a  victim 
of  this  dread  disease.  Dr.  J.  B.  Fraser,  who  was  asso- 
ciated with  him  for  a  few  years,  states  that  he  saw  Dr. 
Mackay  delirious  while  his  perspiration  was  so  profuse 
as  to  be  literally  dropping  through  the  mattress  on 
which  he  was  lying.  He  frequently  hoped  that  science 
would  discover  such  an  antidote  for  malaria  as  vac- 
cination is   for  smallpox. 

2.  Practice  in  Hospital  and  Homes.  —  In  such  dis- 
tressing conditions  and  in  the  presence  of  the  crudest, 
most  absurd,  as  well  as  most  painful  and  injurious 
treatments  of  native  doctors,  it  was  but  natural  that  he 
should  begin  to  use  what  knowledge  of  medicines  he 
had.  This  practice  developed  into  a  hospital  at  Tam- 
sui,  where  tens  of  thousands  were  helped  and  healed, 
very  many  of  whom  were  won  for  Jesus  Christ.  But 
he  felt  that  there  was  a  special  advantage  in  minister- 
ing to  the  afflicted  at  the  stations  and  in  their  homes. 
The  hospital  treatment  came  to  be  regarded  as  a  right 


GEORGE   LESLIE   MACKAY  75 

and  placed  the  patient  under  no  special  obligation  to 
the  mission,  but  Mackay's  voluntary  attendance  in 
chapel  and  home  won  sympathy  for  the  mission  and 
for  the  gospel  that  heals  the  greater  malady. 

3.  He  recognized  the  danger  of  developing  quack- 
ery. In  Chinese  missions  on  the  mainland  it  is  not 
uncommon  for  young  men  who  get  some  knowledge  of 
drugs  to  abandon  the  mission  and  become  medicine 
vendors.  Notwithstanding  this  danger  and  on  account 
of  the  impossibility  of  overtaking  the  work  at  so  many 
stations,  he  instructed  his  students  in  the  use  of  fifty 
of  the  most  commonly  used  remedies  and  with  very 
satisfactory  results. 

4.  Lay  Dentistry.  —  Malaria  causes  toothache, 
which  he  found  to  be  so  common  and  distressing 
that  he  soon  extemporized  a  forceps  and  gave  relief. 
This  grew  into  a  regular  part  of  his  mission  work. 
The  forceps  and  the  Bible  went  together.  He  and  his 
students  would  take  their  stand  in  an  open  place,  ex- 
tract teeth  and  then  preach  the  gospel.  He  is  said  to 
have  extracted  about  40,000  teeth  during  his  lifetime 
and  to  have  become  exceedingly  expert,  having  se- 
cured the  most  modern  and  approved  appliances  in 
the  market.  It  not  only  attracted  attention  but  gave 
relief  to  great  suffering  and  won  attention  for  his 
message.  This  was  a  new  departure  and  as  usual 
won  more  or  less  ridicule  elsewhere,  but  he  had  the 
courage  to  be  odd,  and  the  results  justified  the 
method. 

Spiritual  Power.  —  i.  Prevailing  Prayer.  — 
There  lived  in  Pang-kio-than  the  richest  man  in 
North  Formosa,  worth  $10,000,000  but  a  lawless 
tyrant.     He  made  his  wealth  by  defrauding  the  poor 


76  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

and  kept  several  hundred  soldiers  for  self-defence. 
He  lived  in  luxurious  grandeur,  but  he  had  every  en- 
trance to  his  house  and  grounds  barred.  A  prisoner 
in  a  palace,  the  beggar  at  his  door  was  a  freer  man 
than  he.  He  had  accused  Mackay  at  one  time  of  build- 
ing a  chapel  on  part  of  his  property,  but  before  the 
British  Consul  he  was  beaten  in  his  contention  by  the 
hated  and  despised  barbarian.  He  was  greatly  in- 
dignant and  ordered  his  tenants  to  discontinue  attend- 
ance at  the  chapel.  Some  refused  obedience;  they 
gave  up  their  lands  and  followed  Christ.  Some  years 
later  in  reporting  a  visit  to,  and  cordial  reception  by 
this  rich  man,  he  adds :  "  I  have  gained  every  point 
I  asked  God  for  since  I  landed  here.  I  longed  to  see 
this  town  occupied ;  now  it  is.  I  longed  for  a  substan- 
tial hospital,  and  we  have  it.  I  asked  for  a  chapel 
in  Bang-kah,  and  it  is  built.  I  prayed  for  all  the  cities ; 
every  one  has  a  place  of  worship.  I  asked  for  a  col- 
lege; it  stands  yonder.  I  pleaded  for  the  east  coast, 
and  there  are  many  churches  there.  Every  hamlet 
has  been  visited.  There  are  no  '  regions  beyond,'  no 
strongholds  to  conquer.  The  people  are  yet  to  be  won, 
but  we  shall  not  weary.  Beloved  Formosa  will  be 
under  the  blood-stained  banner."  Mackay  had  found 
the  key  to  the  missionary  problem. 

2.  Communion  of  Samts.  —  In  reporting  the  num- 
ber of  converts  and  the  state  of  the  mission,  he  did 
not  forget  those  who  had  finished  their  course.  They 
were  still  his,  and  he  loved  to  relate  the  story  of  their 
lives  and  their  triumphs  in  death.  In  1882  he  wrote: 
"  When  I  was  in  Canada  eight  baptized  members  went 
home  singing  glory,  glory,  glory,  forevermore.  I  am 
now  sitting  within  a  stone's  throw  of  two  graves.     In 


GEORGE   LESLIE    MACKAY  "J^ 

one  lies  a  dear  young  man,  the  son  of  an  elder,  and  in 
the  other  a  young  man  I  frequently  alluded  to.  I  stood 
an  hour  over  his  grave  recalling  the  past.  When  four 
thousand  savages  in  the  city  of  Bang-kali  pulled  down 
our  chapel  and  threatened  our  lives,  he  stood  at  my 
side  without  flinching.  I  remembered  the  mark  of 
redhot  iron  on  his  forehead.  There  is  no  mark  now 
but  the  mark  John  saw  on  the  forty  and  four  thou- 
sand on  Mount  Zion.  I  can  point  to  saints  above  who 
have  triumphantly  entered  within  the  veil,  as  well  as 
to  converts  in  North  Formosa."  In  1884  he  wrote : 
"  Another  convert  gone  home !  For  eight  years  he  lay 
in  prison  under  a  false  charge.  I  have  bundles  of  let- 
ters written  in  his  cell.  During  these  eight  years 
amid  insult,  hunger  and  torture  he  trusted  in  the  Lord 
Jesus,  exhorting  the  prisoners  to  repentance.  God 
be  praised."  Nothing  was  lost.  He  endured  as  see- 
ing Him  who  is  invisible,  and  the  white-robed  mul- 
titude as  well. 

The  Japanese  War.  —  i.  During  the  Japanese 
war  in  the  years  1895 -1896,  the  Formosan  Church 
again  passed  through  the  furnace.  Many  Christians 
suffered  martyrdom,  not  because  they  were  disloyal 
to  the  Japanese  Government,  but  because  they  were 
misrepresented  by  the  Chinese  officials.  The  mission 
suffered  by  death  and  removal  a  loss  of  about  700 
members.  During  the  greater  part  of  that  war  Dr. 
Mackay  was  in  Canada  on  furlough,  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Gauld  being  in  charge  of  the  mission.  After  Formosa 
became  a  Japanese  possession.  Dr.  Mackay  wrote: 
"  Seeing  the  Japanese  flag  —  a  rising  sun  —  floating 
on  every  hand,  I  often  think  of  the  time  when  the 
Sun  of  Righteousness  shall  arise  and  make  this  island. 


yS  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

SO  full  of  natural  beauty,  a  place  where  the  Church 
of  God  shall  shine  with  all  the  glory  of  our  glorious 
and  glorified  Christ." 

2.  His  long  experience  of  Chinese  officials  made 
him  hopeful  as  to  Japanese  influence  in  the  mission, 
although  certain  disadvantages  immediately  appeared. 
The  introduction  of  the  Japanese  language  into  schools 
and  greater  stringency  in  hospital  administration 
caused  both  schools  and  hospital  to  be  temporarily 
closed.  On  the  other  hand,  the  change  of  Govern- 
ment broke  through  the  wall  of  Chinese  conservatism 
and  made  a  change  of  religion  easier.  It  was  formerly 
regarded  as  an  act  of  disloyalty  to  China  to  abandon 
the  national  religion.  Now  hatred  for  the  Japanese 
induced  friendliness  to  the  rehgion  of  the  foreigner. 
The  Japanese  can  themselves  appreciate  the  catholicity 
of  Christianity  better  than  the  Chinese  could,  and  they 
are  not  so  disposed  to  put  needless  obstacles  in  the  way 
of  the  mission.  To  them  the  beneficial  results  of  Chris- 
tianity are  apparent.  Hence,  after  the  immediate  con- 
fusion arising  from  the  war  and  an  unsettled  govern- 
ment passes  away,  it  is  believed  that  the  conditions  will 
be  more  favorable  to  Christian  work  and  to  the  exten- 
sion of  the  cause  of  Christ. 

The  Martyr  Spirit.  —  Mackay  has  been  charged 
with  heedlessly  exposing  himself  to  danger  and  seek- 
ing martyrdom.  The  taking  of  Bang-kah  has  been  so 
interpreted.  But  the  instinct  of  self-preservation  was 
in  him,  as  in  most  men,  strong  enough  to  escape  death 
when  it  can  be  done  without  disloyalty  to  Christ.  Yet 
"  the  spirit  of  martyrdom  has  been  woven  into  the  his- 
tory of  the  Church."  Krapf  said,  "  The  victories  of 
the  Church  are  won  by  stepping  over  the  graves  of  her 


'  GEORGE   LESLIE   MACKAY  79 

members."  Judson  expressed  the  same  thought :  "  Suf- 
fering and  success  in  service  are  vitally  hnked.  If  you 
suffer  without  succeeding,  it  is  in  order  that  some  one 
else  may  succeed  after  you.  If  you  succeed  without 
suffering,  it  is  because  some  one  else  has  suffered 
before  you."  Christ  said,  "  Except  a  corn  of  wheat 
fall  into  the  ground  and  die,  it  abideth  alone :  but 
if  it  die,  it  bringeth  forth  much  fruit."  The  mar- 
tyr spirit  is  the  true  missionary  spirit.  No  man  is 
fully  equipped  as  a  missionary  who  cannot  do  the 
work  assigned  to  him  regardless  of  suffering  or  death. 
Mackay  took  exposure  and  toil  cheerfully,  not  because 
he  was  insensible  to  suffering,  but  because  in  so  doing 
he  believed  that  he  was  walking  in  the  footsteps  of 
Jesus  Christ.  He  also  recognized,  and  had  many  illus- 
trations of  the  fact,  that  fearlessness  in  dealing  with  a 
foe  is  the  best  weapon  of  defence. 

The  End.  —  i.  His  Translation.  —  The  last  chapter 
in  Dr.  Mackay's  life  is  quickly  written.  In  September, 
1900,  he  went  to  Hongkong  for  treatment  of  what  was 
supposed  to  be  ulceration  of  the  throat,  and  for  a  time 
it  seemed  as  if  the  treatment  might  prove  successful. 
These  expectations  were  disappointed.  The  malady 
soon  appeared  to  be  malignant  and  developed  so  rapidly 
as  to  reach  the  fatal  issue  on  the  second  of  June,  1901. 
On  that  day  a  cable  message  thrilled  the  Canadian  Pres- 
byterian Church  with  the  intelligence  that  the  great 
missionary  was  dead.  In  the  delirium  of  the  last  days 
his  mind  was  still  upon  his  work.  He  rose  during  the 
night,  escaped  from  the  home  to  the  college  and  sat  in 
his  chair,  to  conduct,  as  he  supposed,  an  examination. 
He  was  but  in  the  prime  of  life  and  in  the  vigor  of  his 
days.    It  was  but  natural  that  he  should  reluctantly  lay 


8o  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

down  a  work  that  he  loved  so  well  and  in  which  he  had 
such  unfailing  confidence. 

2.  Post  Mortem  Influence.  —  His  last  message  to  the 
Canadian  Church  was  the  following:  "Will  Formosa 
be  won  for  Christ?  No  matter  what  may  come  in  the 
way,  the  final  victory  is  as  sure  as  the  existence  of  God. 
With  that  thought  firmly  fixed,  there  will  be  but  one 
shout,  '  And  blessed  be  his  glorious  name  for  ever,  and 
let  the  whole  earth  be  filled  with  his  glory,  amen  and 
amen.'  "  The  demonstrations  of  sorrow  on  the  part  of 
the  native  Church  were  unaffected  and  pathetic.  He 
had  spared  nothing  in  their  behalf.  They  understood 
his  life,  appreciated  his  worth  and  recognized  the  ir- 
reparable loss.  At  Tsui-tung-kha  the  church  had  been 
recently  destroyed  by  earthquake,  and  at  the  suggestion 
of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Gauld,  a  "  Mackay  Memorial  Church  " 
has  been  erected  in  its  place.  It  is  a  united  effort,  en- 
tirely built  by  the  Church  in  Formosa,  and  it  is  such 
an  expression  of  affection  as  would  probably  be  most 
appreciated  by  Dr.  Mackay  himself.  There  are  several 
memorial  churches  in  the  mission.  One  is  to  the  mem- 
ory of  his  father,  George  Mackay,  built  by  the  native 
preachers  and  members  in  1884.  Others  are  called  the 
"W.  C.  Burns  Memorial  Church,"  the  "Elizabeth 
Machur  Memorial  Church  "  and  the  "  James  Memorial 
Church."  He  believed  in  so  practical  a  method  of  cher- 
ishing the  memory  of  the  departed.  But  he  could  say 
with  the  apostle,  "  Ye  are  my  epistles  "  —  a  spiritual 
temple  that  earthquakes  cannot  destroy,  that  will  abide 
eternally  in  the  heavens. 

His  Colleagues.  —  Notwithstanding  the  fact  that 
this  is  a  sketch  of  Dr.  Mackay  and  his  work,  it  is  proper 
to  state  that  others  were  associated  with  him  for  longer 


GEORGE   LESLIE    MACKAY  8l 

or  shorter  periods  and  made  their  contributions  to  the 
Church  in  that  island.  Rev.  J.  B.  Fraser,  M.D.,  was 
appointed  in  1874  and  because  of  family  affliction  re- 
tired in  1877.  Rev.  K.  F.  Junor,  M.D.,  was  appointed 
in  1878  and  retired  in  1882,  because  of  personal  afflic- 
tion. The  Rev.  John  Jamieson  was  appointed  in  1882, 
and  died  in  1891.  The  Rev.  W.  Gauld  was  appointed 
in  1892,  continued  to  be  the  colaborer  and  devoted 
friend  of  Dr.  Mackay  throughout  the  latter  years  of  his 
life,  and  he  was  his  tender  and  sympathetic  comforter 
in  death.  After  the  removal  of  the  senior  missionary, 
Mr.  Gauld  assumed  entire  responsibility  and  has  since 
administered  the  mission  with  remarkable  firmness  and 
prudence.  The  Rev.  Thurlow  Fraser,  a  student  volun- 
teer of  Queen's  College,  Kingston,  has  been  appointed 
as  Mr.  Gauld's  associate  in  the  work.  Mr.  Fraser's 
past  gives  promise  of  a  strong  and  effective  ministry. 
May  the  Holy  Spirit,  who  distributeth  to  every  man 
severally  as  He  will,  maintain  the  glorious  record  of 
His  beloved  Church  in  "  beautiful  Formosa." 


ISABELLA   THOBURN 


83 


Isabella  Thoburn 


ISABELLA  THOBURN 

Christian  —  Teacher  —  Missionary 
1 840- 1 90 1 

BY  REV.   W.   F.  OLDHAM,  D.D. 

Scotch-Irish  Ancestry.  —  i.  The  Thoburns  in 
Ireland.  —  The  Scotch-Irish  are  held  in  high  esteem 
in  America.  So  marked  is  this  esteem  that  the  aver- 
age Protestant  Irish  family,  when  it  begins  to  prosper, 
makes  minute  search  for  the  dash  of  Scotch  blood  that 
is  supposed  to  greatly  enrich  it  and  secure  the  family 
in  popular  esteem.  The  Thoburns  were  originally 
Scotch,  probably  sprung  from  Scandinavian  ancestors. 
In  the  seventeenth  century  a  portion  of  the  family 
moved  to  the  neighborhood  of  Belfast,  Ireland.  Here 
early  in  the  last  century  one  of  the  Thorburns,  whose 
name  by  Irish  attrition  had  come  to  be  Thoburn,  mar- 
ried Miss  Crawford,  and  together  they  emigrated  to 
the  United  States,  —  that  "  Beulah  Land  "  toward 
which  Irish  eyes  have  looked  longingly  for  a  hundred 
years  and  never  more  eagerly  than  now. 

2.  On  reaching  America  in  1825  the  Thoburns  were 
attracted  to  Eastern  Ohio,  where  they  settled  on  a 
farm  near  St.  Clairsville.  Ohio  is  one  of  the  remark- 
able States  of  the  Union,  for  here  the  severer  culture 
of  the  older  East  meets  the  expansive  and  virile  en- 

85 


86  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

ergy  of  the  younger  West.  From  this  State  there  has 
come  a  larger  proportion  of  the  commanding  men  and 
women  of  the  Repubhc  than  its  mere  numbers  would 
lead  one  to  expect.  The  Ohio  man  is  prominent  in 
State  and  Church,  and  the  Ohio  woman  is  in  evidence 
everywhere. 

Ohio  Homes  and  Schools.  —  i.  The  Thoburn 
Family.  —  It  was  in  the  stimulating  religious  atmos- 
phere of  this  great  State  that  the  Thoburn  children 
were  born  and  reared.  There  were  ten  of  them,  for 
this  was  one  of  those  healthy,  old-fashioned  families 
that  did  not  tend  to  disappearance  in  a  generation  or 
two.  Five  boys  and  five  girls  made  the  Thoburn 
home  a  bustling,  busy  place.  Isabella  was  the  ninth 
child  and  the  youngest  daughter  but  one.  She  was 
born  March  9,  1840.  All  of  the  children  have 
given  a  good  account  of  themselves  in  life.  Of  the 
sisters,  two  have  been  much  in  the  eye  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church,  because  of  their  wide  public 
service  in  the  woman's  missionary  activities  of  that 
denomination.  Mrs.  J.  R.  Mills  is  now  the  Conference 
Secretary  of  the  Woman's  Foreign  Missionary  Society 
of  the  East  Ohio  Conference,  and  Mrs.  Ellen  Cowen 
of  Cincinnati  is  the  efficient  Corresponding  Secretary 
of  the  Cincinnati  Branch  of  the  same  society,  which  in- 
cludes the  States  of  Ohio,  Kentucky  and  West  Vir- 
ginia. Her  youngest  brother  is  James  Mills  Thoburn, 
Missionary  Bishop  of  India,  a  man  as  well  known  and 
as  influential  for  good  as  any  man  that  America  ever 
sent  to  Southern  Asia. 

2.  The  parents  of  these  children  were,  it  may  easily 
be  believed,  people  of  sterling  worth  and  deep  re- 
ligious fervor.     The  father  was  a  class-leader  in  the 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  87 

Methodist  Church.  The  mother,  a  woman  of  extraor- 
dinary force  of  character,  profoundly  affected  her 
children's  early  religious  life.  As  with  Augustine  and 
John  Wesley,  so  with  the  Thoburns ;  when  one  in- 
quires into  the  life  and  outcomes  of  the  child,  he  must 
take  note  of  the  mother  who,  more  than  any  other  on 
earth,  shapes  infancy  and  adolescence  into  worthy 
manhood. 

3.  Isabella's  Education.  —  Isabella,  in  common  with 
the  other  children  of  the  family,  received  her  early  edu- 
cation in  the  country  public  school.  Here  she  proved 
herself  a  faithful  student,  not  brilliant,  but  purposeful 
and  thorough.  She  never  would  assent  to  a  proposi- 
tion, whether  in  letters  or  numbers,  until  she  under- 
stood it.  Mental  thoroughness  early  characterized 
her.  She  might  seem  a  trifle  slow  in  reaching  a  posi- 
tion, but  when  she  arrived  she  knew  the  ground  which 
she  had  been  over  thoroughly,  and  was  competent  to 
intelligently  direct  the  next  adventurer.  It  was  un- 
usual at  that  time  for  young  women  to  go  any  farther 
with  their  education  than  the  public  school,  but  Miss 
Thoburn  and  her  mother  were  agreed  that  the  largest 
possible  preparation  for  the  work  of  life  is  the  best 
investment  of  money  and  time  that  youth  can  make. 
So  the  public  school  course  was  followed  by  the  train- 
ing afforded  by  the  Wheeling  Female  Seminary  and 
that  by  a  year  in  the  Art  School  of  Cincinnati.  It 
was  well  that  such  sound  educational  foundations  were 
laid  in  her  girlhood  by  one  who  was  afterwards  to 
open  the  pathway  to  the  higher  learning  for  the  com- 
ing leaders  of  a  far  away  people.  For  Miss  Thoburn 
to  have  been  content  with  less  than  the  best  prepara- 
tion which  the  times  and  her  circumstances  afforded, 


88  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

would  have  barred  her  from  the  wider  usefulness  of 
later  years. 

4.  Early  Teaching  Experiences.  —  Forty  years  ago 
the  number  of  educated  women  was  small  everywhere. 
It  was  larger  in  Ohio  than  in  most  States,  but  not  so 
large  but  that  one  might  safely  say  of  any  well  pre- 
pared woman  that  she  would  probably  become  a 
teacher.  This  Miss  Thoburn  became  at  the  early  age 
of  eighteen.  But  though  young  in  years,  she  was  re- 
markably mature  in  judgment  and  had  that  admirable 
admixture  of  frank  kindliness  with  native  leadership 
which  enables  its  happy  possessor  to  become  at  once 
the  friend  and  guide  of  others.  She,  who  was  after- 
wards to  open  the  way  to  college  education  for  Chris- 
tian young  women  in  India,  began  her  experience  as 
a  humble  country  school  teacher  in  Ohio.  And,  in- 
deed, it  is  no  mean  preparation  for  any  place  of  use- 
fulness in  life  to  meet  at  life's  threshold  the  severe 
test  of  a  "  country  school  marm's "  experiences. 
What  tact  and  shrewdness  and  native  force  that  ex- 
perience calls  for  in  any  successful  issue  of  it,  only 
those  know  who  have  tried  and  either  failed  or  suc- 
ceeded. If  we  were  advising  a  missionary  candidate 
with  suitable  preparation,  who,  for  any  reason,  is  de- 
tained in  the  home  land  for  a  while,  we  would  recom- 
mend a  year's  experience  in  a  country  school  room  as 
likely  to  exercise  and  develop  all  those  qualities  most 
needed  in  a  foreign  missionary. 

5.  Further  Teaching  Experience.  —  From  the  coun- 
try school  she  was  advanced  to  higher  grades  of  teach- 
ing, serving  in  influential  positions  for  one  year  in 
a  Young  Ladies'  Seminary  in  Newcastle,  Pa.,  and 
later  in  a  similar  school  in  West  Farmington,  Ohio. 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  89 

During  these  years  she  was  always  the  earnest,  help- 
ful Christian  worker,  who  came  to  richer,  fuller  de- 
velopment year  by  year.  She  gave  much  thought  and 
attention  to  the  pupils  under  her  care.  She  did  not, 
however,  refrain  from  the  wider  work  of  the  day. 
The  Civil  War  was  making  great  demands  upon  the 
women,  as  well  as  upon  the  men  of  the  nation.  In 
all  work  looking  to  the  alleviation  of  suffering  among 
the  sick  and  wounded  soldiers  she  showed  the  same 
energetic  but  tender  spirit  that  in  after  years  made 
her  so  successful,  and  which  won  to  her  the  hearts  of 
all  whom  she  touched.  Her  interest  in  the  affairs  of 
the  nation  never  waned.  When  domiciled  in  India 
she  followed  all  the  larger  politics  of  her  adopted 
country  with  the  keen,  sympathetic  interest  of  one 
who  recognized  that  no  lover  of  his  kind  can  be  satis- 
fied until  all  organized  society  is  so  purified  as  to  en- 
large the  chance  for  virtue  in  the  individual ;  that  men 
are  "  men  "  and  not  merely  "  souls,"  and  that  the  true 
winner  of  souls  is  that  "  wise  "  one  who  recognizes 
that,  whatever  power  there  may  be  in  the  individual 
to  live  his  own  life,  there  is  yet  a  solidarity  in  the 
human  family  which  makes  the  ills  of  one  the  burden 
of  all. 

The  Call  from  India.  —  i.  Her  Brother's  Mes- 
sage. —  While  Miss  Thoburn  was  pursuing  her  use- 
ful work  in  America  with  no  particular  thought  in 
her  mind  of  service  in  any  foreign  land,  events  were 
shaping  in  India  which  were  destined  to  entirely  alter 
the  course  of  her  life.  It  may  always  be  assumed 
that  the  people,  who  are  most  likely  to  benefit  the 
heathen  when  they  reach  them,  are  those  who  are 
faithful  to  duty  and  seize  opportunity  wherever  they 


90  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

may  be.  The  student  volunteer  who  is  shpshod  in 
the  work  at  hand  and  careless  of  the  advancement  of 
those  around  him  here,  can  scarcely  be  expected  to  do 
notable  things  when  he  reaches  some  other  land.  Af- 
ter all,  life  anywhere  only  gives  one  an  opportunity 
to  work  out  what  is  within.  In  the  absence  of  a  de- 
vout, helpful  personality  mere  change  of  locality  means 
little.  The  even  tenor  of  Miss  Thoburn's  way  in 
Ohio  was  broken  by  the  receipt  of  a  letter  from  her 
missionary  brother,  James,  who  had  been  for  several 
years  in  North  India.  He  was  a  young  widower  and 
had  constantly  met  with  difficult  situations  created 
by  the  peculiar  place  assigned  to  woman  in  Hindu 
society.  With  him  to  clearly  see  a  difficulty  has  ever 
been  preliminary  to  a  decisive  attempt  to  meet  it.  As 
he  found  his  work  constantly  hindered  with  compli- 
cations which  no  man's  hand  could  unravel,  he 
promptly  wrote  his  sister  Isabella  to  take  steps  to 
join  him  as  a  missionary  in  North  India.  That  fate- 
ful letter  was  fraught  with  weighty  consequences. 

2.  Woman  in  India.  —  What  James  M.  Thoburn 
felt  in  his  work  was  the  common  experience  of  all 
missionaries  in  that  land  of  strange  contradictions, 
where  excessive  humaneness  towards  animals  exists 
side  by  side  with  harshest  and  most  unsympathetic 
treatment  of  women.  The  Indian  woman  has  suf- 
fered, beyond  her  sisters  of  any  other  heathen  land, 
the  disabilities  that  later  Hinduism  has  put  upon  her 
sex.  As  early  as  the  fifth  century  before  Christ, 
Manu,  the  famous  lawgiver,  in  his  code  defines  the 
place  of  woman  and  her  relation  to  her  husband  as 
that  of  a  slave  to  her  lord,  a  creature  to  her  master. 
He  is  to  exercise  the  severest  discipline  in  her  treat- 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  9 1 

ment  and  in  her  standing  in  this  world,  and  any  ghm- 
mering  hope  that  she  may  have  of  a  life  to  come  de- 
pends upon  her  servile  obedience  to  lordly  man.  The 
sad  history  of  Indian  womanhood,  as  seen  by  those 
brought  up  in  the  free  air  of  Christly  teachings,  has 
been  pathetically  summed  up  in  three  brief  sentences, 
which,  though,  like  all  apothegms,  not  wholly  true, 
still  contain  so  much  truth  as  to  afford  a  severe  ar- 
raignment of  Brahmanism.  This  terse  history  is, 
"  Unwelcomed  at  birth,  unhonored  in  life,  unwept  in 
death."  No  heavier  burden  lies  upon  life  in  India 
than  the  inhuman  and  debasing  treatment  of  woman- 
hood by  the  religious  prescription  of  the  ruling  faith. 
India  can  make  but  little  advance  in  any  true  progress 
or  civilization,  except  as  the  wrongs  of  child  marriage, 
enforced  widowhood,  and  the  social  suspicion  and  dis- 
respect and  religious  discrimination  against  her,  are 
lifted  off  the  heart  and  mind  of  the  Indian  woman. 
No  blacker  cloud  darkens  any  national  sky  than  the 
cloud  of  unhonored  womanhood  which  overhangs 
India. 

Among  the  most  futile  of  the  defenses  that  are  of- 
fered is  that  the  Indian  woman  desires  the  conditions 
under  which  she  lives  and  most  earnestly  resists  any 
alteration  of  social  conditions.  This  has  always  been 
the  lame  apology  of  the  wrong-doer.  The  slaveholder 
has  always  held  his  slaves  for  their  good  and  has  al- 
ways pleaded  their  belief  in  his  statement  of  the  case; 
anything  to  the  contrary  has  always  been  the  mis- 
chievous work  of  meddlesome  friends  of  the  slave. 
And  so  with  Indian  women,  there  are  not  a  few 
Western  men  who  are  tempted  to  believe  the  Hindu 
putting  of  the  case.    But  what  if  the  woman,  deprived 


92  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

for  centuries  of  the  ordinary  rights  and  privileges  of 
a  human  being,  should  be  sunk  through  the  genera- 
tions into  passivity  and  even  ignorant  w^elcoming  of 
her  servile  place.  Alas,  for  the  captive  bird  that  never 
knew  freedom ! 

But  let  any  faintest  understanding  of  the  true  state 
of  the  case,  any  feeblest  knowledge  of  how  other 
women  live  and  are  trusted  and  honored  reach  her, 
and  at  once  the  woman's  heart  in  India  pines  for  what 
she  immediately  recognizes  as  her  natural  right. 
Listen  to  the  prayer  of  one  of  these  as  recorded  by 
her  fellow  countrywoman,  the  Pundita  Ramabai :  "  O 
Lord,  hear  my  prayer.  For  ages  dark  ignorance  has 
brooded  over  our  minds  and  spirits ;  like  a  cloud  of 
dust  it  rises  and  wraps  us  round ;  and  we  are  like 
prisoners  in  an  old  and  moldering  house,  choked  and 
buried  in  the  dust  of  custom ;  and  we  have  no  strength 
to  get  out.  Bruised  and  beaten,  we  are  like  the  dry 
husks  of  the  sugar-cane  when  the  sweet  juice  has 
been  extracted.  Criminals  confined  in  jails  are  hap- 
pier than  we,  for  they  know  something  of  the  world. 
They  were  not  born  in  prison;  but  we  have  not  for 
one  day,  no,  not  even  in  our  dreams,  seen  Thy  world, 
and  what  we  have  not  seen  we  cannot  imagine.  To 
us  it  is  nothing  but  a  name ;  and  not  having  seen  Thy 
world  we  cannot  know  Thee,  its  Maker.  We  have 
been  in  this  jail;  we  have  died  here,  and  are  dying. 
O  God  of  mercies,  our  prayer  to  Thee  is  this,  that  the 
curse  may  be  removed  from  the  women  of  India." 

3.  Unmarried  Lady  Missionaries.  —  And  these  iso- 
lated women  are  cut  off  from  any  chance  of  male 
ministration.  No  male  missionary  may  preach  the 
gospel  to  any  but  the  lowest  caste  women  of  India, 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  93 

and  even  these  listen  with  timidity  and  are  ill  at  ease 
in  the  presence  of  a  strange  white  man.  The  mis- 
sionaries' wives  work  among  them ;  but  the  affairs 
of  the  missionary  households,  the  claims  of  missionary 
children  and  the  necessary  and  legitimate  sharing  of 
the  wives  in  the  plans  and  burdens  of  their  husbands 
prevent  them  from  being  able  to  adequately  meet  the 
great  demand  for  a  female  evangelistic  and  teaching 
agency.  If  the  women  of  India,  the  home  makers 
and  mothers  of  Hinduism,  are  to  be  evangelized  and 
taught  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  and  saved  to  hon- 
ored and  worthy  womanhood,  this  must  be  done  by 
unmarried  women  from  Christian  lands  preparing  a 
band  of  native  women  workers  to  carry  the  gospel 
into  secluded  zenanas  in  the  cities  and  to  the  mohullas 
in  the  villages  of  that  populous  land.  This  James 
Thoburn  saw  and  wrote  inviting  Isabella  to  join  him. 
But  there  was  a  practical  difficulty  in  the  way. 

4.  Missionary  Boards  and  Women  Workers.  — 
When  Miss  Thoburn,  in  response  to  her  brother's  in- 
vitation, sought  to  find  her  way  to  India,  she  learned 
that  there  was  no  existing  organization  of  the  Church 
which  would  authorize  her  going  or  her  proposed 
work.  The  General  Society  had  not  thought  of  any 
but  a  male  agency.  All  those  who  had  the  direction 
of  the  Society  were  men,  and  Christendom  has  ever 
been  slow  to  recognize  the  possibilities  of  women  and 
the  value  of  their  service  in  the  extension  of  the  Re- 
deemer's Kingdom.  It  was  true  that  many  young 
women  seemed  to  be  eager  for  missionary  service,  but 
this  seemed  only  to  add  to  the  perplexity  of  the  offi- 
cials. Dr.  Durbin,  one  of  the  strong  men  of  the 
Church  and  the  secretary  of  the  Society,  wails :  "  If 


94  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

I  wanted  fifty  young  ladies,  I  could  find  them  in  a 
week ;  but  when  I  want  five  young  men,  I  must  search 
for  them  a  year  or  more."  That  it  might  be  possible 
that  God  was  moving  upon  the  hearts  of  the  young 
women,  and  that  they  might  be  exceedingly  serviceable 
in  the  evangelization  of  the  darkened  peoples  of  the 
earth,  seems  not  to  have  entered  the  male  mind.  And 
yet  Miss  Thoburn  was  so  earnest  and  devoted  a 
woman  and  so  loyal  a  Methodist,  that  when  she  ap- 
plied to  the  Society  to  be  sent  to  India,  they  felt  that 
they  could  not  send  her  and  yet  scarcely  dared  to  re- 
fuse to  do  so.  There  was  the  alternative  that  she 
could  go  under  the  auspices  of  the  Woman's  Union 
Missionary  Society  of  New  York,  which  was  already 
in  successful  operation,  but  Miss  Thoburn  preferred 
to  exhaust  the  possibilities  of  appointment  by  the 
agencies  of  her  own  Church  before  she  would  seek 
any  other  way  of  reaching  what  she  sincerely  and 
strongly  held  to  be  the  work  which  God  called  her  to 
do.  This  hour  of  man's  perplexity  was,  however,  the 
hour  of  God's  opportunity,  and  there  was  about  to 
arise  a  new  agency  which  should  solve  the  difficulty 
and  become  an  added  force  of  marked  power  for 
preaching  the  gospel  to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

5.  The  Woman's  Foreign  Missionary  Society  Or- 
ganized. —  While  Miss  Thoburn  and  the  missionary 
secretaries  were  in  this  dilemma,  the  great  Lord  of 
the  harvest  field  was  moving  upon  the  hearts  of  Meth- 
odist women  in  a  city  far  removed  from  Ohio.  In 
Boston,  prolific  mother  of  great  reforms  and  philan- 
thropic movements,  there  met  early  in  1869  Dr.  and 
Mrs.  William  Butler,  the  founders  of  Methodist  Epis- 
copal missions  in  India  and  afterwards  in  Mexico,  and 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  95 

Mrs.  Lois  Parker,  the  wife  of  Dr.  Edwin  W.  Parker  of 
India.  All  three  of  these  bore  the  burden  of  the  de- 
pressed women  of  India  upon  their  hearts,  and  as 
they  described  the  condition  of  these  women  to  their 
Boston  friends,  the  idea  sprang  up  of  a  female  agency 
to  meet  this  special  need.  A  meeting  was  appointed 
to  consider  the  subject  and  to  take  steps  to  form  a  so- 
ciety. The  day  came,  Tuesday,  March  23,  1869,  and 
with  it  came  a  pelting  storm.  Six  women  were  pres- 
ent beside  the  two  missionary  ladies.  Nothing  daunted 
the  meeting  was  held.  The  speakers  made  powerful 
addresses,  and  the  six  hearers,  greatly  moved,  pro- 
ceeded to  immediately  organize  the  Woman's  Foreign 
Missionary  Society  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
With  splendid  zeal  the  Society  was  recruited  from 
East  and  West  till  it  soon  numbered  hundreds  of  mem- 
bers. 

6.  First  Public  Meeting.  —  At  the  first  public  meet- 
ing it  was  announced  that  a  missionary  candidate  from 
Ohio  had  been  referred  by  the  general  society  to  the 
Woman's  Society.  She  was  in  every  way  qualified 
and  was  eminently  fitted  to  succeed.  The  Society  was 
of  tender  age,  and  there  was  but  little  money  as  yet  in 
the  treasury.  What  was  to  be  done?  A  vote  had  al- 
ready been  taken  that  the  first  missionary  should  soon 
be  sent.  Here  was  the  lady  already  at  their  doors, 
ready  to  go !  Mrs.  E.  F.  Porter  of  Boston  sprang  to 
her  feet  and  said :  "  Shall  we  lose  Miss  Thoburn  be- 
cause we  have  not  the  needed  money  in  our  hands  to 
send  her?  No,  rather  let  us  walk  the  streets  of  Boston 
in  our  calico  dresses  and  save  the  expense  of  more 
costly  apparel.  I  move,  then,  the  appointment  of  Miss 
Thoburn  as  our  missionary  to  India."    The  speech  met 


96  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS  ' 

with  ready  response :  "  We  will  send  her,"  they  all 
cried.  Amid  scenes  like  these  were  the  beginnings  of 
that  great  Society,  whose  agents  are  now  found  in  all 
heathen  lands  and  in  the  unevangelized  portions  of 
Europe  and  Mexico  and  South  America ;  whose  income 
is  rapidly  approaching  half  a  million  dollars  yearly; 
which  has  never  known  anything  but  an  onward  move- 
ment and  has  steadily  gone  forward  from  strength  to 
strength ;  which,  take  it  all  in  all,  is  the  most  splendid- 
ly successful  Methodist  society  in  existence.  A  few 
months  later  a  medical  missionary.  Miss  Clara  Swain, 
M.D.,  was  also  appointed,  and  together  the  two  un- 
married lady  missionaries,  the  first  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  sailed  for  India  after  several  fare- 
well meetings.  The  sight  of  two  young  women  leav- 
ing home  and  kindred  for  the  unknown  dangers  of  a 
far  heathen  land  greatly  impressed  the  imagination  and 
stirred  the  heart  of  the  Church.  The  Woman's  For- 
eign Missionary  Society  has  been  greatly  blessed  of 
God  in  the  quality  of  its  workers.  Bishop  David 
Moore,  after  examining  the  Methodist  Missions  of 
Japan,  China  and  Korea,  writes  in  February,  1902: 

"  To  the  Secretaries  of  the  Woman's  Foreign  Mis- 
sionary Society: 

"  I  have  now  seen  all  your  work  in  these  three  Em- 
pires [China,  Korea  and  Japan]  and  am  prepared  to 
speak  with  authority.  I  am  proud  of  the  Woman's 
Foreign  Missionary  Society  and  grateful  for  the  work 
it  is  doing  and  the  results  it  has  already  achieved.  You 
have  a  remarkable  body  of  workers.  Were  the  selec- 
tion to  be  made  anew,  I  could  not  recommend  a  woman 
to  be  omitted  from  the  list.  The  reinforcements  seem 
to  be  hand-picked." 


ISABELLA    THOBURN  97 

This  testimony  has  been  paralleled  by  competent  ob- 
servers in  all  other  fields;  but  it  may  safely  be  said 
that  the  first  missionaries  of  the  Society  have  never 
been  excelled.  By  general  consent  of  her  fellow  work- 
ers Miss  Thoburn  was  for  many  years  of  her  later  life 
held  to  be  "  first  among  her  equals,"  Beloved  and 
trusted  by  all,  she  was  by  common  consent  and  without 
the  matter  ever  being  put  into  words  the  guide  and  ad- 
viser of  the  whole  body  of  women  at  home  and  abroad 
who  worked  with  her. 

Early  Years  in  India.  —  i.  Work  Defined.  —  On 
their  arrival  in  India  the  two  missionaries  were  very 
kindly  received  by  all,  but  there  might  have  been  much 
difficulty  in  the  place  to  be  assigned  them  in  the  field 
in  their  relation  to  their  fellow  workers,  were  it  not 
for  the  quality  and  clearheadedness  of  the  ladies  them- 
selves. The  initial  victory  to  be  won  for  all  time  for 
women  workers  was  first  within  the  mission  itself. 
What  is  meant  will  be  more  clearly  seen  by  reading 
this  extract  from  the  pen  of  Bishop  Thoburn,  writing 
about  his  early  experience  with  his  sister :  "  I  was  not 
quick,  however,  to  learn  that  the  ladies  sent  out  to  the 
work  were  missionaries,  and  that  their  work  was  quite 
as  important  as  my  own.  A  few  days  after  my  sister 
had  commenced  her  work,  I  found  myself  pressed  for 
time  and  asked  her  to  copy  a  few  letters  for  me.  She 
did  so  cheerfully,  and  very  soon  I  had  occasion  to  re- 
peat the  request.  The  copying  was  again  done  for  me, 
but  this  time  I  was  quietly  reminded  that  a  copyist 
would  be  a  great  assistance  to  her  as  well  as  to  myself. 
The  remark  made  me  think,  and  I  discovered  that  I 
had  been  putting  a  comparatively  low  estimate  on  all 
the    work    which    the    missionaries    were    not    doing. 


98  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

Woman's  work  was  at  a  discount,  and  I  had  to  recon- 
sider the  situation  and  once  for  all  accept  the  fact  that 
a  Christian  woman  sent  out  into  the  field  was  a  Chris- 
tian missionary,  and  that  her  time  was  as  precious,  her 
work  as  important  and  her  rights  as  sacred  as  those  of 
the  more  conventional  missionaries  of  the  other  sex. 
The  old-time  notion  that  a  woman  in  her  best  estate  is 
only  a  helper  and  should  only  be  recognized  as  an  as- 
sistant is  based  on  a  very  shallow  fallacy.  She  is  a 
helper  in  the  married  relation,  but  in  God's  wide  vine- 
yard there  are  many  departments  of  labor  in  which  she 
can  successfully  maintain  the  position  of  an  independ- 
ent worker." 

2.  True  Romance  of  Missions.  —  The  preconceived 
ideas  of  almost  every  missionary  are  likely  to  receive  a 
rude  shock  on  reaching  the  mission  field.  The  usual 
thought  is  that  the  heathen  world  is  full  of  amiable 
people  eager  to  welcome  the  missionary  and  to  lend 
themselves  immediately  to  the  carrying  out  of  all  the 
teaching  with  which  the  missionary  is  charged.  A  very 
brief  experience  easily  upsets  all  this.  The  "  heathen  " 
are  found  to  be  as  tenacious  of  their  beliefs  and  modes 
of  thought  and  habits  as  others;  nor  are  they  always 
ready  to  admit  the  value  of  the  strange  missionary's 
message,  nor  to  see  why  they  should  change  their  ways, 
derived  from  generations  of  revered  ancestors.  The 
missionary  early  learns  that  the  taking  of  the  heathen 
world  for  Christ  is  not  a  romantic  gospel  promenade, 
but  a  very  serious  piece  of  business  which  taxes  the 
utmost  resources  of  the  best  endowed  and  most  fitly 
prepared  men  and  women  through  successive  genera- 
tions. Happy  is  that  missionary  who,  when  the  mere 
romance  of  the  foreign  asi)ects  of  his  work  is  staled  by 


ISABELLA    TIIOBURN  99 

experience,  falters  no  whit  because  the  higher  and  per- 
ennial romance  of  helping  sluggish  immortals  and  in- 
durated civilizations  by  the  quickening  presence  of  the 
life-giving  God  remains  as  the  calling  for  life's  most 
strenuous  endeavor.  Even  thoughtful  and  well-poised 
Miss  Thoburn,  who  had  been  in  close  correspondence 
with  her  missionary  brother  James,  did  not  find  India 
the  eager  and  waiting  land  that  she  had  pictured.  But 
she  soon  adjusted  herself  to  the  facts  of  the  life  around 
her  and  from  the  first  saw  with  keen,  unerring  insight 
that  if  India's  women  were  to  be  won  and  India's 
womanhood  to  be  brought  to  worthy  place,  it  must  be 
under  the  leadership  of  Indian  women  and  through 
their  devoted  service.  It  was  clearly  seeing  this  that 
made  her  so  eager  an  advocate  of  the  best  training 
that  could  be  given  her  Indian  girls,  and  it  was  this 
which  made  her  eager  to  thrust  them,  when  fitted,  into 
every  place  of  responsibility  that  opened.  And,  again, 
it  was  this  readiness  to  afford  them  every  possible  ad- 
vantage and  to  give  them  ever  widening  opportunities 
for  service  and  responsible  position,  that  so  endeared 
Miss  Thoburn  to  her  scholars  and  fellow  workers  as 
to  make  their  devotion  to  her  something  extraordinary 
and  touching  to  behold. 

3.  Her  First  School.  —  As  soon  as  she  perceived 
that  the  first  requisite  was  to  train  leaders,  she  deter- 
mined to  open  a  school  that  should  develop  into  a  high 
school  for  girls  in  the  city  of  Lucknow.  This  city  was 
the  most  suitable  for  the  purpose,  for  it  was  the  capital 
of  Oudh  and  the  center  of  Methodist  activities  at  the 
time.  It  had  been  besieged  during  the  Indian  Mutiny 
twelve  years  before ;  but  already  swift  moving  events 
had  made  the  Mutiny  but  a  memory,  and  Lucknow  was 


lOO  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

fast  forgetting  its  bitterness  in  the  changes  and  the 
new  ways  being  introduced  by  the  EngHsh.  But  what- 
ever progress  Lucknow  might  be  making  toward  new 
ways  of  thought  and  life,  the  idea  of  a  high  school 
for  native  girls  was  entirely  too  advanced,  not  only  for 
that  city  but  for  all  interior  India.  Not  only  was  this 
too  radical  for  Hindus,  but  even  the  English  and  Amer- 
icans, who  spoke  dark  parables  about  "  spoiling  the 
native  women "  and  educating  them  beyond  their 
sphere,  were  opposed  to  the  scheme. 

Miss  Thoburn,  nothing  daunted,  launched  out.  hir- 
ing a  small  court  in  the  Aminabad  Bazaar,  and  the 
older  missionaries  tell  to  this  day  with  great  glee  of 
how  "  Yunas  Singh's  boy,  armed  with  a  club,  kept 
watch  over  the  entrance  to  the  school  lest  any  rowdy 
might  visit  the  displeasure  of  the  public  upon  the  seven 
timid  girls  who  were  gathered  inside  with  the  ad- 
venturous lady  teacher  who  had  coaxed  them  to  come." 
The  school  was  soon  moved  into  the  private  house  of 
one  of  the  missionaries  and  rapidly  grew  into  the 
famous  Girls'  Boarding  and  High  School,  out  of 
which  ultimately  came  the  Lucknow  Woman's  Col- 
lege. 

Higher  Education  for  Women  in  India.  —  i. 
While  the  troublesome  questions  of  location  and  pupils 
were  early  solved,  not  so  the  question  of  what  their 
training  should  be.  Indeed,  there  is  still  an  occasional 
controversy  among  the  missionaries  and  their  sup- 
porters as  to  whether  missionary  funds  are  rightly 
spent  in  providing  any  but  a  plain  education  for  the 
children  of  Christian  converts.  The  necessity  for  pro- 
viding an  educated  leadership  seems  even  now,  strange- 
ly enough,  to  meet  with  question.     It  is  true  that  the 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  lOI 

questions  are  growing  fewer  all  the  time,  but  that  there 
should  be  any  at  all  is  a  matter  for  surprise.  What 
Miss  Thoburn's  ideas  on  the  subject  were  may  be 
learned  from  this  utterance  made  at  the  Ecumenical 
Conference  in  New  York  in  April,  1900 :  "  The  power 
of  educated  womanhood  is  simply  the  power  of  skilled 
service.  We  are  not  in  the  world  to  be  ministered 
unto  but  to  minister.  The  world  is  full  of  need,  and 
every  opportunity  to  help  is  a  duty.  Preparation  for 
these  duties  is  education,  whatever  form  it  may  take 
or  whatever  service  may  result.  The  trained,  which 
means  the  educated  in  mind  and  hand,  win  influence 
and  power  simply  because  they  know  how.  Few  mis- 
sionaries have  found  the  expected  in  the  work  await- 
ing them  on  the  field.  We  want  to  tell  women  and 
children  of  Christ,  their  Savior  and  Deliverer,  and  to 
teach  them  to  read  the  story  for  themselves.  But  in- 
stead of  willing  and  waiting  pupils,  we  have  found  the 
indifferent,  or  even  the  hostile,  to  win  whom  requires 
every  grace  and  art  we  know.  We  have  found  sick- 
ness and  poverty  to  relieve,  widows  to  protect,  advice 
to  be  given  in  every  possible  difficulty  or  emergency, 
teachers  and  Bible  women  to  be  trained,  houses  to  be 
built,  horses  and  cattle  to  be  bought,  gardens  to  be 
planted  and  accounts  to  be  kept  and  rendered.  We 
have  found  use  for  every  faculty,  natural  and  acquired, 
that  we  possessed,  and  have  coveted  all  that  we  lacked. 
But  it  is  not  only  our  power  over  those  we  go  to  save 
that  we  must  consider.  When  saved  they  must  have 
power  over  the  communities  in  which  they  live.  We  do 
poor  work  if  we  do  not  inspire  others  to  go  and  do  like- 
wise. Intemperance,  divorce,  degrading  amusements, 
iniurious,   impure  or   false  literp<^ure.   are  all   serious 


I02  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

hindrances  in  the  mission  field.     Women  must  know 
how  to  meet  them." 

2.  Lilavati  Singh's  Plea.  —  With  Miss  Thoburn  at 
the  New  York  meeting  was  Miss  Lilavati  Singh,  one  of 
her  pupils  who,  with  Phoebe  Rowe  and  a  host  of  others, 
had  been  trained  into  lofty  Christian  womanhood  by 
Miss  Thoburn  and  who  loved  her  with  a  strength  and 
devotion  rarely  seen.  It  was  of  Miss  Singh  that  ex- 
President  Harrison  said,  that  if  Christian  missions 
had  done  nothing  more  than  make  a  Miss  Singh  out 
of  a  Hindu  girl,  they  had  repaid  all  the  money  put 
into  them.  Said  Miss  Singh,  speaking  also  on  the 
higher  education  of  Indian  women :  "  It  has  been  said 
that  because  the  gospel  is  to  be  preached,  therefore 
energy  and  money  and  time  should  not  be  expended 
on  higher  education.  With  all  that  you  have  done  for 
as  in  the  past,  you  will  never  have  enough  workers  for 
us.  The  only  way  to  get  enough  workers  to  meet  the 
demands  of  the  field  is  to  train  us  to  do  the  work 
that  your  missionaries  have  done.  I  have  been  told 
that  when  the  officers  of  our  Church  have  the  names 
of  candidates  presented  to  them,  one  of  the  first  ques- 
tions they  ask  is.  What  education  has  she  had?  Now 
I  could  not  help  thinking  that  if,  with  your  heredity 
and  environment,  you  require  good  education  in  your 
laborers,  how  can  we  poor  heathen  do  efficient  work 
without  the  same  advantages?  I  have  been  with  mis- 
sionaries for  a  number  of  years,  and  I  have  seen  them 
when  their  hearts  have  been  breaking.  It  is  not  the 
climate  that  breaks  their  hearts ;  it  is  not  the  difference 
of  food  and  the  strange  surroundings ;  but  what  is 
breaking  the  hearts  of  a  great  many  missionaries  has 
been  the  failure  of  character  in  their  converts.     From 


LiLAVATi  Singh 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  IO3 

my  own  experience,  I  want  to  tell  you  that  failure  of 
character  comes  oftentimes  from  ignorance ;  because 
we  do  not  know  any  better  we  disappoint  your  mis- 
sionaries. If  you  want  us  to  be  what  you  are  and  to 
be  what  Christ  intends  us  to  be,  give  us  the  education 
that  you  have  had,  and  in  time  and  with  God's  help 
and  grace  we  will  not  disappoint  you." 

3.  Lai  Bagh,  the  Ruby  Garden.  —  From  the  bazaar 
to  a  private  room  and  then  to  a  private  rented  house 
marked  the  outer  movement  of  the  girls'  school,  which 
was  meanwhile  growing  in  favor  so  greatly  that  the 
seven  had  become  more  than  a  hundred.  Then  came 
one  of  those  marked  days  in  the  history  of  all  mis- 
sionary enterprises  which  bring  in  new  eras.  Pressed 
for  room  and  not  satisfied  with  the  location  of  her 
school,  Miss  Thoburn  heard  of  the  possibility  of  se- 
curing a  great  house,  built  by  a  Moslem  in  a  beautiful 
tract  of  seven  acres  studded  with  trees  and  fragrant 
with  flowers.  The  estate  was  called  Lai  Bagh,  the 
"  Ruby  Garden,"  and  no  location  in  the  whole  city  was 
so  desirable.  She  secured  this  property  for  about 
$7,000,  and  with  praises  to  God  and  heartfelt  grati- 
tude the  school  was  transferred  to  the  new  home. 
In  all  beautiful  India  it  would  be  difficult  to  find 
a  more  lovely  spot.  Amid  all  her  earnest,  practical 
work  how  deep  and  tender  a  love  of  beauty  held  Miss 
Thoburn  may  be  learned  from  her  own  description  of 
her  school  home.  "  All  about  the  compound  are  trees 
and  shrubs,  some  of  which  are  always  blooming. 
When  the  hot  winds  of  April  are  scorching  the  annuals 
in  the  flower  beds,  the  amaltas  trees,  which  the  Eng- 
lish call  the  Indian  laburnum,  hang  out  their  golden 
pendants,  making  a  glory  about  us  brighter  than  the 


I04  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

morning  sunlight,  while  deeper  than  the  noon  heats 
blaze  the  red  pomegranate  flowers  all  thro'  May  and 
June.  The  rains  bring  out  the  dainty  tassels  on  the 
babool  trees  and  lower  down  the  oleanders,  which 
scarcely  find  breathing  room  amid  the  odors  of  tube- 
roses and  jessamine.  In  October  and  November  the 
pride  of  India,  a  tall  tree  of  delicate  foliage,  puts  forth 
branches  of  wax-like  white  flowers.  All  through  the 
cold  season  convolvulus,  begonia  and  other  creepers 
are  blooming  everywhere,  clinging  to  the  portico,  up 
old  trees,  over  gate-ways  and  trellis  work.  A  passion 
flower  covers  one  whole  side  of  the  portico.  February 
is  the  month  of  roses,  though  some  are  blooming  all 
the  year  round ;  and  as  the  days  grow  warmer  and 
March  comes  in  the  whole  garden  overflows  with 
color  and  sweetness.  Then  there  is  the  sacred  pepul 
tree,  a  banyan  and  a  palm ;  also  seven  wells,  four  of 
which  are  stone  built,  each  of  which  is  a  treasure 
house."  This  beautiful  house  she  called  her  home  for 
thirty-one  years.  Here  she  added  one  department  to 
another,  until  in  course  of  time  it  came  to  be  easily  the 
foremost  Christian  school  for  Indian  women.  At  the 
close  of  the  first  year  it  was  determined  to  change 
the  day  school  into  a  boarding  school. 

4.  Boarding  Schools  in  Mission  Lands.  —  From  the 
missionary  standpoint  a  boarding  school  is  of  more 
value  than  five  day  schools,  for  the  simple  reason  that 
in  the  former  the  children  are  cut  off  from  the  demor- 
alization of  heathenism  and  are  steadily  played  upon 
by  the  forces  that  make  for  Christian  culture.  No 
better  investment  is  made  by  the  Christian  Church  than 
in  the  boarding  schools  placed  in  heathen  lands.  In 
1887  the  curriculum  was  widened  and  the  school  be- 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  IO5 

came  the  Girls'  High  School,  and  a  collegiate  depart- 
ment was  added.  Through  all  these  years  the  battle 
for  the  higher  education  of  Indian  women  was  being 
pressed  within  the  missionary  ranks  as  well  as  founda- 
tions laid  for  it  among  the  young  women.  Nor  was  the 
school  anything  like  the  conventional  girls'  boarding 
school.  It  was  a  real  home  for  its  inmates  and  the 
center  of  much  sympathetic  Christian  activity,  which 
touched  the  whole  city  around  it  and  stretched  away 
to  the  farthest  shores  of  India.  Nor  were  the  ministra- 
tions of  Lai  Bagh  and  its  unbounded  hospitality  ex- 
ercised toward  Methodists  alone.  People  of  all  the 
denominations  and  of  none ;  Christians,  Hindus,  Mo- 
hammedans, the  rich,  the  poor  and  chiefly  the  troubled 
and  the  sorrowful  ever  found  there  a  ready  welcome, 
hearty  cheer  and  always  the  discriminating  helpful 
word,  more  precious  than  gold.  How  Miss  Thoburn 
stood  the  strain  of  her  multifarious  duties  and  how  she 
contrived  to  use  herself  and  her  household  in  such 
varied  and  laborious  ministry  without  any  appearance 
of  bustle  and  haste,  that  revealing  mark  of  smaller 
souls,  was  always  a  mystery  to  her  friends.  She  always 
found  time  for  people  who  needed  her,  and  yet  she 
was  punctual  and  the  soul  of  order.  Thus  she  became 
the  adviser  and  helper  of  many.  The  whole  mission 
sought  her  advice,  and  it  was  an  open  secret  that  her 
Bishop  brother  always  felt  more  comfortable  when 
she  approved  his  constantly  enlarging  plans.  While 
her  school  claimed  her  chief  attention,  she  was  never 
one  of  those  unduly  narrow  ones  who  see  nothing  but 
the  portion  they  are  working  at.  She  helped  all 
through  the  city  to  create  Sunday-schools,  and  with 
her  pupils  both  taught  these  and  visited  the  Hindu 


Io6  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

women  in  the  zenanas.  In  1874  she  lent  herself  for 
awhile  to  Cawnpore,  a  neighboring  city,  and  opened 
a  boarding  school  there. 

5.  Women  Evangelists.  —  Miss  Thoburn  was  always 
intensely  interested  in  the  evangelization  of  the  women 
and  greatly  favored  the  training  of  women  evangelists 
for  service  in  the  villages  and  at  the  fairs  and  women's 
bathing  places.  It  gave  her  great  satisfaction  when 
Phoebe  Rowe,  one  of  her  trusted  and  deeply  loved 
teachers,  turned  aside  from  teaching  to  do  the  work 
of  an  itinerating  evangelist  among  the  lowly,  ignorant 
people  of  the  villages.  It  will  readily  be  seen  that  for 
the  teachers  and  older  pupils  the  wide  round  of  ac- 
tivities and  the  practical  interest  in  all  manner  of  Chris- 
tian work  that  made  Lai  Bagh  a  living  center  could 
not  but  broaden  and  quicken  their  religious  life.  No 
wonder  that  so  many  of  Miss  Thoburn's  girls  are 
teachers  and  missionaries  and  devoted  Christian 
women!  Such  outcomes  are  natural  and  spontaneous 
under  such  leadership. 

6.  Lucknow  Woman's  College.  —  In  1886  came  the 
critical  day  in  the  life  of  the  school.  One  of  her  girls, 
desiring  to  study  medicine,  wished  first  to  secure  a 
college  training.  A  woman's  college  had  been  opened 
in  Calcutta,  secular,  and  it  may  not  be  unfair  to  say, 
at  least  non-Christian,  if  not  agnostic,  in  its  religious 
positions.  It  was  the  only  college  in  all  India  for 
women.  Mrs.  Chuckerbutty,  the  girl's  mother,  a  Chris- 
tian convert,  would  not  hear  of  her  daughters'  going 
to  the  Calcutta  School.  "  I  wish  my  daughter  to  finish 
her  literary  education,  but  I  would  rather  she  should 
know  nothing  more,  than  have  her  taught  to  doubt  the 
truth  of  Christianity,"  said  this  godly  Indian  mother. 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  lO^ 

Miss  Thoburn  keenly  felt  the  situation  and  boldly  pro- 
posed to  still  further  widen  the  curriculum  and  lift  the 
school  to  the  college  grade.  The  first  contribution  to 
the  added  expense  was  500  rupees  from  the  widow, 
Mrs.  Chuckerbutty ;  and  thus  by  a  steady  evolution, 
from  the  little  day  school  in  the  bazaar  in  1870  came 
in  1887  the  Lucknow  Woman's  College,  the  first  of 
its  kind  in  all  Asia. 

The  patient,  earnest  worker  had  won  her  battle 
against  misunderstandings  and  questions  on  the  one 
hand,  and  on  the  other  against  the  stolid  apathetic  in- 
difference to  woman's  training  that  characterizes  In- 
dian society.  Not  the  least  contribution  which  her 
work  has  made  to  the  progress  of  that  great  people 
to  whom  she  gave  thirty-one  years  of  her  fruitful  life, 
is  the  keen  desire  of  the  male  workers  to  find  educated 
wives  and  the  equally  earnest  resolve  of  the  native 
Indian  pastors  and  leaders  to  give  their  daughters  the 
best  possible  training.  To  have  borne  conspicuous 
part  in  transforming  any  portion  of  Indian  society,  so 
that  those  who  a  generation  or  two  ago  looked  upon 
women  as  little  above  the  clods  of  the  earth  should 
now  begin  to  covet  college  training  for  them,  is  surely 
to  have  secured  very  large  returns  from  a  life's  in- 
vestment. She  found  an  infant  Christian  Church,  gath- 
ered mainly  from  the  poor  and  unprivileged ;  she  found 
the  women  of  this  Church  illiterate,  burdened,  inca- 
pable of  much  progress ;  she  took  the  girls  and  made 
from  them  a  new  type  of  Indian  women  such  as  were 
never  dreamed  of ;  and  when  she  had  demonstrated 
in  the  actual  product  what  Christ  could  do  for  Indian 
womanhood,  her  task  was  done  and  "  she  was  not,  for 
God  took  her." 


Io8  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

Home  Furloughs.  —  i.  While  for  thirty-two  years 
her  home  was  in  Lai  Bagh  and,  present  or  absent, 
she  was  its  directing  head,  she  was  obliged  twice  to 
return  to  America  for  health  and  once  to  seek  larger 
means  for  the  work.  In  1880,  after  ten  years'  service, 
she  returned  home  via  Palestine.  Her  visit  to  the 
Holy  Land  she  greatly  enjoyed,  and  she  profited  by 
it  much  as  a  Christian  and  a  teacher.  In  1886  her 
health  failed,  so  that  on  her  return  to  America  she 
was  obliged  to  remain  no  less  than  five  years  before 
sufficiently  restored  for  service  in  the  tropics.  Again 
she  came  in  1898,  bringing  with  her  Miss  Lilavati 
Singh,  as  fragrant  a  flower  of  womanhood  as  ever 
bloomed  in  that  garden  of  Indian  roses,  to  plead  for 
$20,000  to  extend  her  College  and  its  buildings.  The 
money  was  gladly  given  her. 

2.  Deaconess  Work.  —  During  her  five  years  of  en- 
forced stay  in  America,  from  1886  on,  she  was  by  no 
means  idle  nor  spent  her  time  in  mere  recuperation. 
She  came  to  Chicago  and  there  met  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Meyer,  who  had  already  launched  their  now  wide- 
spread deaconess  homes  and  training  schools.  Space 
fails  to  adequately  describe  this  Christlike  order  of 
woman's  ministry  of  the  Protestant  Church,  which  has 
in  it  all  the  devotion  and  single-heartedness  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  sisterhoods  without  the  renunciation 
of  personal  liberty.  Miss  Thoburn  was  quick  to  see  the 
value  of  this  new  arm  of  power,  the  value  of  trained 
women  who  do  for  love  of  God  and  man  what  can- 
not ordinarily  be  done  for  money.  She  determined  to 
introduce  the  deaconess  movement  into  India;  but  she 
was  never  one  to  ask  others  to  go  where  she  did  not 
herself  lead  the  way.    She  therefore  became  a  deacon- 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  IO9 

ess  herself  and  took  the  regular  nurse  deaconess  train- 
ing. She  then  went  to  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  and  there 
proved  invaluable  in  helping  found  the  "  Elizabeth 
Gamble  Deaconess  Home  and  Training  School  "  and 
a  little  later  the  "  Christ's  Hospital,"  under  deaconess 
management.  When  she  returned  to  India,  it  was  as 
a  deaconess,  and  this  order  of  service  is  being  very 
widely  employed  all  through  India,  where  the  deaconess 
ranks  are  being  recruited  from  the  daughters  of  the 
soil  in  increasing  numbers.  Wherever  she  might  be, 
at  home  or  abroad,  she  ever  carried  the  seeing  eye, 
the  understanding  mind,  the  heart  at  leisure  from 
itself  and  eager  in  all  ways  to  minister  to  the  unprivi- 
leged. 

Fatal  Sickness  and  Death.  —  i.  The  End.  —  On 
her  return  to  India  in  igoo,  she  resumed  her  place 
at  Lai  Bagh  and  all  the  accustomed  activities  were 
renewed.  But,  alas !  it  was  not  for  long.  The  sud- 
den coming  of  that  awful  plague,  Asiatic  cholera,  the 
patient  suffering,  the  unexpected  physical  collapse,  the 
triumphant  death,  the  dismay  and  passionate  grief 
of  the  bereaved  circle  and  the  mourning  of  the  whole 
Christian  body  in  North  India  and  throughout  the 
English-speaking  world  form  the  triumphant  close 
of  a  victorious  life. 

2.  Miss  Singh's  Letter.  —  Details  as  to  these  may 
in  part  be  learned  from  the  following  letter  which  is 
published  in  full,  not  only  to  convey  an  adequate  idea 
of  the  value  of  Miss  Thoburn's  service  in  India,  but 
indirectly  to  show  the  quality  of  an  Indian  woman 
molded  under  Miss  Thoburn's  hand.  While  Miss 
Singh  and  such  as  she  live  and  teach  others,  the  great 
and  noble  woman  who  founded  what  is  now  known 


no  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

as  the  Isabella  Thoburn  Woman's  College  cannot  be 
said  to  have  ceased  living. 

"  Lucknow  Woman's  College, 

"  Sept,  12,  1901. 
"  My  dear  Mrs.  Crandon : 

"  I  tried  to  write  to  you  last  week  but  could  not. 
It  has  all  been  so  sudden ;  I  cannot  believe  it.  I  get  up 
each  morning  and  go  to  her  room  expecting  to  find 
her  there,  thinking  that  the  other  is  a  horrible  dream ; 
but  she  is  not  there,  and  if  it  were  not  for  the  fact 
that  I  can  throw  myself  beside  her  bed  and  ask  her 
God,  who  was  so  real  to  her,  to  help  me,  I  do  not 
know  how  I  could  get  through  these  days !  It  is  a 
little  over  twenty-three  years  since  I  came  to  know  her, 
and  I  have  been  with  her  ever  since,  and  she  has  be- 
come a  mother  to  me,  who  am  motherless.  I  forgot 
she  was  an  American  woman  and  I  a  Hindustani 
woman ;  I  was  as  free  with  her  as  if  she  had  been  my 
own  mother. 

"  Yesterday  I  went  for  a  few  moments  to  the  ma- 
tron's room  which  used  to  be  her  room  in  1882.  Sud- 
denly I  remembered  the  talks  she  had  with  me  there, 
the  prayers  she  prayed  with  me  as  she  tried  to  lead 
me  to  the  Savior.  I  felt  I  was  on  holy  ground  and  that 
I  must  bow  in  prayer.  In  fact  each  room,  each  spot 
seems  to  be  associated  with  something  sacred ;  here 
she  prayed  with  mc,  there  she  said  that  to  me,  here 
t  saw  her  help  such  an  one,  until  my  heart  cries. 
What  shall  we  do  without  her  to  help  and  inspire? 
I  remember  saying  to  her,  when  she  decided  to  give 
us  a  college  education :  '  Miss  Thoburn,  do  you  know 
people   say   you   arc   spoiling   us  ? '     She   said,   '  Yes, 


ISABELLA   THOBURN  III 

but  I  want  you  to  prove  to  them  that  love,  confidence 
and  education  do  not  spoil  people.'  And,  dear  Mrs. 
Crandon,  again  and  again  when  I  have  been  tempted 
to  be  slack  in  duty  or  low  in  motive,  the  thought. 
Miss  Thoburn  trusts  you,  has  kept  me  good  and  true. 
What  can  I  say  about  her?  At  present  I  am  writing 
in  her  room.  I  have  filled  her  vases  with  favorite  flow- 
ers; I  use  her  pen;  the  blotting  paper  she  used  lies 
under  this  paper ;  I  can  trace  her  writing  on  it.  Every- 
thing is  here  just  the  same,  only  our  precious  one 
is  gone.  I  am  glad  for  her  sake,  because  she  worked 
hard  and  needed  rest  which  she  would  not  take  here. 
Again  and  again  I  would  say  to  her :  '  Miss  Thoburn 
do  not  rise  at  4.30  A.M.,  like  the  rest  of  us ;  you  are 
not  so  strong  as  we  younger  ones.'  But  she  was  the 
first  to  get  up  and  the  last  to  retire.  Sometimes  she 
did  look  so  tired.  Now  she  and  Miss  Rowe  can  rest 
together,  but  what  will  we  do  ? 

"  But  I  must  tell  you  about  that  awful  day.  On 
Thursday,  the  twenty-ninth,  she  went  to  Cawnpore  to 
see  about  the  stone  for  Bishop  Parker's  grave.  We 
do  not  know  whether  she  contracted  the  disease  there 
or  how  she  got  it.  When  she  returned  to  us,  she  looked 
well.  Saturday  morning  she  did  a  little  gardening, 
baked  cookies  for  us  and  when  I  saw  her  at  break- 
fast she  looked  pale  and  tired.  I  followed  her  to 
her  room  and  insisted  upon  her  lying  down  and  taking 
a  little  rest.  I  went  to  her  room  again  at  4  P.M., 
and  I  said :  '  Miss  Thoburn,  you  look  so  pale ;  does 
your  head  ache?'  She  said,  '  No,  I  am  a  little  tired.' 
So  I  ordered  the  phaeton  and  insisted  upon  her  going 
for  a  drive.  While  waiting  for  the  carriage  I  said: 
*  Miss  Thoburn,  I  am  a  lonely  woman,  and  I  hope  the 


112  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

Lord  will  take  me  home  before  He  does  you,  for  I 
cannot  do  without  you ;  I  want  you  to  lay  me  to  rest 
as  you  did  Miss  Rowe.'  She  said :  '  I  do  not  know 
whether  you  will  go  first,  or  I,  for  '  the  Son  of  Man 
Cometh  at  an  hour  we  know  not  of ' ;  but  if  I  go,  I 
want  you  to  have  Phoebe's  Bible.'  When  the  carriage 
came  she  wanted  me  to  go  with  her,  but  I  said :  '  If  I 
go,  I  will  chatter  the  whole  time,  and  you  will  get 
no  rest;  I  want  you  to  have  a  restful  time.'  I  sent 
her  off,  and  an  hour  later  I  saw  her  arranging  flow- 
ers in  the  dining  room.  It  was  Mr.  West's  birthday, 
and  all  the  missionaries  were  invited  for  dinner.  At 
dinner  I  noticed  that  she  only  ate  her  soup,  and  I  said, 
'  Miss  Thoburn  you  are  sick.'  She  declared  emphat- 
ically she  was  only  tired.  At  lo  P.M.  I  bade  her  good 
night,  and  that  was  all  till  3  A.M.,  Sunday,  when 
the  night  watchman  came  and  called  me  and  said  she 
had  sent  for  me.  I  went  down  and  sent  the  carriage 
for  the  doctor  and  in  the  meantime  applied  the  usual 
remedies.  She  said,  '  The  doctor  will  think  you  very 
foolish  for  troubling  him  for  only  an  attack  of  indi- 
gestion.' I  said,  '  I  would  feel  more  comfortable  were 
he  around.'  He  came  and  looked  grave  and  sent  for 
the  best  doctors  in  the  town.  They  were  with  her 
constantly.  Till  noon  we  had  every  hope,  and  I  be- 
lieve she  herself  expected  to  get  well,  and  therefore 
gave  no  message.  After  12  o'clock  she  was  too  weak 
to  speak.  When  the  cramps  were  very  bad  she  said, 
'  Let  me  hold  your  hand  for  I  do  not  wish  to  groan.' 
That  is  the  way  our  precious  one  had  lived ;  no  com- 
plaint about  the  hardest  thing!  When  the  pain  was 
very  bad,  she  said  to  me,  '  Sing.'  I  said,  '  What  ?  '  She 
said,   *  Come   Thou   fount  of  every  blessing.'     I   got 


ISABELLA    THOBURN  II3 

some  one  in  the  room  to  sing  that  and  others  of  her 
favorite  hymns.  In  her  pain  and  agony  she  kept 
speaking  in  Hindustani,  It  nearly  broke  my  heart 
to  hear  her.  She  had  Hved  for  us,  and  she  was  dying 
for  us ;  she  was  so  one  of  us  that  in  her  last  moments 
she  forgot  her  own  tongue  and  spoke  in  ours.  There 
is  no  one  like  her,  —  our  dear,  devoted  friend.  She 
lingered  on  till  8  P.M.,  then  left  us.  But  for  Christ's 
words,  '  I  will  not  leave  you  comfortless,  — orphans, 
the  margin  says,  —  I  will  come  to  you,'  I  do  not  know 
how  we  could  bear  this  sorrow.  But  now  the  cry  of 
my  heart  is.  Make  me  a  little  like  her,  that  people 
when  they  see  me  may  say,  '  The  spirit  of  Miss  Tho- 
burn  doth  rest  upon  her.'  In  her  Sunday-school  book 
I  found  her  pledge  in  connection  with  the  Twentieth 
Century  Movement,  by  which  she  had  promised  to 
bring  ten  new  souls  to  Christ.  I  had  taken  the  same 
pledge,  but  now  I  must  work  hard  for  hers  and  for 
my  own;  and  as  my  beloved  is  so  near  Jesus  she  can 
ask  Him  to  help  my  weak  efforts. 

"  I  cannot  tell  you  about  the  funeral,  for  I  remember 
nothing.  I  will  get  some  one  else  to  write  about  it  by 
and  by.  Miss  Nichols  has  not  been  very  well  this 
year  and  Miss  Thoburn  was  troubled  about  her.  Again 
and  again  she  said,  '  I  thought  she  was  the  one  for 
my  place,  but  perhaps  God  has  other  plans.'  But 
the  strange  part  of  it  is  that  Miss  Nichols  is  getting 
well  in  a  miraculous  way,  and  the  doctors  say  she 
can  stay  in  India.  I  wonder  if  it  is  because  Miss  Tho- 
burn has  seen  Jesus  face  to  face  and  asked  Him  for 
this  that  she  wanted  so  much.  But  I  must  stop  for 
it  is  time  to  send  this  to  the  post  office.  I  had  intended 
to  write  for  the  Branch  meeting,  as  also  for  the  Gen- 


114  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

eral  Executive,  but  now  I  cannot.  Give  them  all  my 
best  love,  and  if  you  think  it  best,  read  them  part 
of  this  letter.  Tell  them  to  be  very  good  to  us  for  we 
are  orphans  and,  dear  Mrs.  Crandon,  do  try  to  send 
some  one  to  take  the  teaching  off  Miss  Nichol's  hands, 
for  we  must  keep  her  well,  and  she  cannot  teach  and 
superintend  both.  The  plan  is  to  have  Mrs.  Parker 
live  with  us  for  a  sort  of  adviser,  but  we  will  need 
another  missionary  to  teach  in  the  College.  Pray  for 
us,  love  us  even  more  than  you  have  done,  for  we 
seem  so  alone  in  the  world  without  our  friend. 

"  Yours  affectionately, 

"  LiLAVATi  Singh." 

3.  God's  Acre.  —  Miss  Thoburn's  body  lies  in  the 
Lucknow  cemetery,  beside  the  grave  of  Dr.  Badley,  the 
founder  of  the  Reid  Christian  College.  The  bodies  of 
these  two  great  missionaries  there  await  side  by  side 
the  Resurrection  morning. 


CYRUS    HAMLIN 


115 


Cyrus  Hamlin 


CYRUS   HAMLIN,    D.D.,    LL.D. 

The  Founder  of  Robert  College 
1811-1900 

BY  SECRETARY  C.  C.  CREEGAN,  D.D. 

Introductory.  —  It  was  the  privilege  of  the  writer 
of  this  sketch  to  know  Dr.  HamHn  intimately  during 
the  last  twenty  years  of  his  life,  and  if  there  is  warmth 
in  his  tribute,  it  will  not  be  forgotten  that  these  words 
come  from  a  friend  who  knew  him  well,  and  who  heard 
the  entire  story  which  follows,  and  much  more,  from 
the  lips  of  this  venerable  and  heroic  missionary.  A 
generation  from  now  when  the  historian  tells  the  full 
story  of  the  founding  of  Robert  College,  not  to  speak 
of  the  other  forms  of  missionary  service  rendered  by 
Dr.  Hamlin,  he  will  be  placed  in  the  foremost  rank  of 
modern  missionaries.  There  were  but  few,  if  any,  who 
combined  in  so  large  a  degree  rare  qualities  as  scholar, 
teacher,  inventor,  administrator,  diplomat  and  states- 
man. 

Birth  and  Childhood.  —  i.  His  ancestors  were 
Huguenots.  His  grandfather,  Eleazer  Hamlin,  was  a 
well-informed  farmer  and  was  a  soldier  in  the  War  of 
the  Revolution,  as  were  also  three  of  his  sons.  In  con- 
sideration of  the  faithful  services  which  he  rendered  to 
his  country,  the  legislature  of  Massachusetts  gave  him 

117 


Il8  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

a  large  section  of  land  in  Maine,  which  had  not  yet  be- 
come a  State.  Upon  examination,  however,  he  found 
the  tract  rocky  and  so  full  of  caves  "  that  it  had  be- 
come the  headquarters  of  bears."  Finding  it  worth- 
less for  farming  purposes  he  declined  to  receive  it. 
Finally  four  farms  were  given  to  his  four  sons  in  Wa- 
terford,  Maine,  which  is  about  forty  miles  from  Port- 
land. 

2.  It  was  here  in  Waterford  that  the  father  of  our 
hero,  Hannibal  Hamlin,  settled  in  1799.  During  the 
same  year  he  was  married  to  Susan  Faulkner  of  Acton, 
Mass.,  a  charming  woman,  the  daughter  of  Colonel 
Francis  Faulkner,  an  officer  in  the  Revolutionary  War. 
The  parents  of  Dr.  Hamlin  did  much  to  introduce 
Massachusetts  culture  in  the  forest  of  Maine.  They 
established  a  lyceum  and  a  weekly  spelling  match, 
which  did  much  to  increase  the  intelligence,  especially 
of  the  young  people,  of  the  thirty-five  families  which 
made  up  the  population  of  the  town. 

3.  His  Birth  and  Earliest  Years.  —  Among  these 
forests  and  rude  surroundings  on  January  5,  181 1, 
Cyrus  Hamlin  was  born,  who  in  the  providence  of  God 
was  in  later  years  to  stand  before  kings.  Hannibal 
Hamlin,  Vice-President  of  the  United  States  during 
Lincoln's  Administration,  was  his  first  cousin.  Dr. 
Hamlin,  in  speaking  of  his  infancy,  says :  "  I  was  pro- 
nounced weakly,  my  head  was  too  big.  So  the  wise 
old  ladies  comforted  my  dear  mother,  and  told  her  she 
must  never  expect  to  bring  up  that  child."  When  he 
was  but  seven  months  old  his  father  died,  leaving  Mrs. 
Hamlin  with  four  children.  It  was  a  great  struggle  to 
bring  them  up  upon  that  farm,  but  she  very  soon  had 
excellent  help  in  Cyrus  and  his  brother  Hannibal,  two 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  II9 

years  his  senior.  In  this  widow's  home  the  Bible  was 
read  every  day,  and  the  Sabbath  was  kept  strictly.  Al- 
though the  church  was  two  miles  away,  it  was  seldom 
that  the  Hamlin  pew  was  not  well  filled. 

4.  Hamlin's  Boyhood.  —  When  six  years  of  age, 
Cyrus  began  his  school  life  in  the  old  red  schoolhouse. 
Seeing  a  forked  flame  shoot  out  from  the  hearth,  for- 
getting where  he  was  he  laughed  aloud  and  the  entire 
school  joined,  and  for  this  the  master  seized  his  hand 
and  gave  him  "  a  terrible  ferruling."  Such  was  the 
stern  school  which  this  delicate  boy  found  in  the  year 
18 1 7.  Yet  in  writing  of  his  teachers  in  these  days,  he 
says :  "  Our  teachers  were  persons  whom  we  loved  and 
honored.     I  remember  them  all  with  great  affection." 

During  the  long  nights  of  winter  the  books  read  were 
"  Adam's  History  of  New  England,"  Goldsmith's 
"  History  of  Greece  and  Rome  "  and  his  "  Vicar  of 
Wakefield,"  "  Pilgrim's  Progress,"  "  Robinson  Cru- 
soe "  and  Rollin's  "  Ancient  History."  He  also  read 
The  Panoplist — later  The  Missionary  Herald  —  and 
The  North  American  Review.  How  similar  his  read- 
ing was  to  that  of  Lincoln  who  at  this  very  time  was  a 
boy  in  Southern  Indiana. 

In  speaking  of  the  farm  life  of  these  days  he  writes, 
"  We  were  early  inured  to  toil,  we  took  to  it  kindly 
and  were  ambitious  to  do  men's  work  while  we  were 
mere  boys."  He  began  his  career  as  a  mechanical 
genius  by  making,  while  but  a  boy,  from  a  yellow  birch 
an  ox-yoke  which  was  pronounced  by  the  neighbors 
"  a  thing  of  beauty."  After  this  almost  every  tool  and 
article  needed  on  the  farm  was  made  by  this  young  me- 
chanic who  had  no  teacher  in  these  lines. 

His  earliest  interest  in  missions  comes  to  the  front 


120  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

on  the  annual  muster  day,  when  Cyrus  was  eleven  years 
old.  He  started  alone  to  see  the  sham  fight  with  Indians 
in  the  neighboring  town,  and  as  he  set  out,  his  mother 
gave  him  seven  cents  for  gingerbread,  etc.  In  giving  it 
she  said,  "  Perhaps,  Cyrus,  you  will  put  a  cent  or  two 
into  the  contribution  box  at  Mrs.  Farrar's."  When  he 
reached  the  home  of  Mrs.  Farrar  he  said,  ''  I'll  dump 
them  all  in,"  and  he  did,  leaving  nothing  for  refresh- 
ments. When  he  returned  that  evening  "  hungry  as 
a  bear  "  and  told  how  he  had  given  all  his  money  for 
the  heathen,  his  mother  gave  him  "  such  a  bowl  of 
milk  as  he  had  never  eaten." 

Apprentice  Years  in  Portland.  —  i.  When  six- 
teen years  of  age,  on  January  6,  1827,  Cyrus  started  for 
Portland  to  learn  with  his  brother-in-law,  Mr.  Charles 
Farley,  the  trade  of  a  silversmith  and  jezveler.  It  was 
one  of  the  coldest  days  of  the  winter,  and  when  he 
reached  the  home  of  his  sister,  he  was  nearly  frozen. 
During  the  three  years  of  his  apprenticeship,  he  made 
remarkable  progress,  won  many  friends  and  began  to 
exhibit  something  of  that  mechanical  and  inventive 
genius  which  won  for  him  great  fame  in  after  years. 

2.  During  this  period  he  attended  the  preaching  of 
the  saintly  Edward  Payson  and  was  a  member  of  his 
Bible  class.  Dr.  Payson  was  very  feeble  physically 
and  was  obliged  to  close  his  work  at  this  time.  Cynis, 
who  had  come  to  love  and  reverence  him,  writes: 
"  His  farewell  to  his  pulpit  was  so  tender  and  solemn 
that  few  eyes  were  dry.  I  saw  the  tears  of  one  who 
I  supposed  was  a  graceless  young  man."  It  is  evi- 
dent that  young  Hamlin  had  been  much  moved  by  the 
ministry  and  life  of  this  consecrated  pastor. 

In  this  church  he  joined  a  society  of  Christian  young 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  121 

men  which  met  every  week.  It  was  partly  social  and 
partly  literary.  It  asked  each  of  its  members  to  con- 
tribute half  a  dollar  a  week  toward  the  education  of 
Edward  Payson,  Jr.,  in  Bowdoin  College.  Such  were 
the  social  and  religious  influences  which  helped  to 
mold  this  country  boy  in  a  strange  city.  On  May 
6,  1828,  when  seventeen  years  of  age,  he  joined  this 
Congregational  church.  His  brother  Hannibal  united 
with  the  home  church  at  the  same  time,  and  the  bonds 
of  affection  made  closer  by  this  act  were  only  severed 
by  death. 

3.  A  Call  to  the  Ministry.  —  Deacon  Isaac  Smith, 
who  had  been  noting  the  development  of  Christian 
character  in  young  Hamlin  and  his  unusual  talents, 
called  him  aside  one  day  and  urged  him  to  consider 
the  claims  of  the  ministry  for  his  life-work.  In  reply 
he  said,  "  The  expenses  make  it  absolutely  impossible." 
The  good  deacon  replied :  "  Oh,  I  will  see  to  that. 
The  church  has  voted  to  aid  to  the  extent  of  $1,000." 
With  feelings  of  great  tenderness  he  bade  farewell  to 
the  shop  and  store  and  all  his  friends  and  mounted  the 
stage  for  Bridgton,  Maine. 

In  the  Academy.  —  i.  His  life  in  the  fitting  school 
at  Bridgton  under  the  excellent  principal.  Rev,  Charles 
Soule,  was  most  delightful.  Much  of  the  time  he 
boarded  in  the  home  of  Mr.  Soule,  caring  for  his  horse 
and  receiving  his  board  for  a  nominal  sum.  He 
formed  a  warm  friendship  for  the  principal  and  his 
good  wife,  of  whom  he  wrote  fifty  years  afterwards : 
"  A  noble-hearted  Christian  gentleman,  I  remember 
him  with  affection ;  and  dear  Mrs.  Soule  can  never  be 
forgotten." 

2.  Young  Hamlin  was  a  great  student  and  by  being 


122  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

permitted  to  work  extra  hours  he  took  the  fitting 
course  in  about  half  the  usual  time.  He  began  his 
studies  at  five  o'clock  every  morning  and  kept  at 
work  until  ten,  allowing  scant  time  for  meals  and  exer- 
cise. He  was  ready  to  pass  his  entrance  examinations 
for  college  by  the  autumn  of  1830.  During  his  stay 
at  the  Academy,  being  within  walking  distance  of  his 
home  he  frequently  visited  his  mother  and  brother 
and  always  kept  up  the  deepest  interest  in  the  old 
home. 

BowDOiN  College.  —  i.  Cyrus  Hamlin  turned  his 
face  toward  Bowdoin  with  fear  and  trembling,  for  his 
opportunities  had  not  been  the  best  possible,  but  he 
received  his  certificate  of  admission  without  difficulty 
to  the  largest  freshman  class  that  had  ever  been  ad- 
mitted. Among  his  beloved  professors  was  the  dis- 
tinguished poet,  Henry  W.  Longfellow,  and  among 
his  class-mates  —  several  of  whom  rose  to  distinction 
—  was  Professor  Henry  B.  Smith,  who  shared  with 
him  the  honors  of  his  class. 

2.  Feeble  health.  —  Always  rather  feeble,  at  the 
end  of  the  first  year  of  constant  work  in  college,  his 
physician  said  to  him :  "  Go  home  to  your  mother ; 
this  is  no  place  for  you."  Later  Dr.  Lincoln  told 
Professor  Smyth,  "  You  must  not  expect  to  see  that 
student  back  here."  A  short  time  at  home,  however, 
with  his  mother's  excellent  care  and  plenty  of  fresh 
air  and  sunshine,  restored  him  and  he  continued  his 
studies  to  the  end  of  the  course  without  a  break. 

3.  At  this  time  that  relic  of  barbarism,  college  hav- 
ing, was  at  its  height  in  Bowdoin,  and  Cyrus  Hamlin 
did  more  perhaps  than  any  one  else  to  break  it  up. 
In  order  to  check  the  power  of  this  evil  which  had 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  I23 

reached  the  danger  point,  more  than  to  punish  an 
outrage  upon  himself,  he  had  several  of  the  hazers 
arrested  and  brought  before  the  court.  The  case  was 
settled  by  the  hazers  making  written  confession  and 
apology  and  payment  of  all  expenses.  In  this  move- 
ment he  had  the  cordial  support  of  the  leading  cit- 
izens and  the  sympathy  of  the  students.  This  ex- 
hibition of  courage  made  for  him  a  few  enemies,  but 
it  did  much  to  check,  if  it  did  not  completely  break, 
the  hazing  craze  in  the  college  for  many  years. 

4.  During  a  portion  of  his  course  Mr.  Hamlin  was 
assistant  librarian.  Since  Professor  Longfellow  was 
librarian,  it  was  not  only  the  means  of  earning  a  por- 
tion of  the  term  bills,  but  it  brought  him  in  close 
contact  with  the  great  poet.  Speaking  of  Longfellow 
he  says :  "  Any  inquiry  about  an  author  usually 
brought  him  out,  but  he  was  always  busy  with  some 
investigation  of  his  own,  and  we  did  not  intrude  upon 
him.     He  was  universally  liked." 

5.  The  Great  Revival.  —  It  was  during  Hamlin's 
college  days  that  a  revival  of  great  power  occurred, 
the  greatest  ever  witnessed  in  Bowdoin  College  and 
in  the  town  of  Brunswick.  Some  of  the  leading  men 
of  the  community  —  among  them  Governor  Dunlap 
and  Dr.  Lincoln  —  were  converted.  Of  the  more  than 
fifty  students  who  decided  to  enter  upon  the  Chris- 
tian life  were  Professor  Henry  B.  Smith,  the  famous 
theologian,  Professor  Harris  of  Yale,  and  others  who 
became  leaders  in  the  American  Church.  It  was  a 
grief  to  Mr.  Hamlin  that  his  beloved  teacher  Professor 
Longfellow  had  no  sympathy  with  this  movement. 

6.  Missionary  Spirit  in  Bozvdoin.  —  In  the  winter 
of  1831-32  Munson  and  Lyman,  later  the  martyrs  of 


124  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

Sumatra,  were  taking  lectures  in  the  medical  college, 
and  it  was  doubtless  due  to  the  influence  of  these 
devoted  young  men  that  Hamlin,  as  well  as  several 
others,  decided  to  volunteer  for  the  foreign  field. 
Bond,  Dole  and  Parris  went  to  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
where  they  did  a  noble  work.  When  Mr.  Hamlin 
told  his  mother  of  his  decision  to  be  a  missionary, 
she  said,  "  Cyrus,  I  have  always  expected  it,  and  I 
have  not  a  word  to  say."  Not  a  whisper  of  opposi- 
tion came  from  his  brother  or  sisters. 

7.  Society  Life.  —  The  two  rival  societies  were  the 
Peucinian  and  the  Athenaean.  Mr.  Hamlin  was  pres- 
ident of  the  Peucinian,  the  Prayer  Circle,  and  the 
Theological.  It  fell  to  him  to  give  the  public  oration 
before  the  Peucinian  Society,  and  he  selected  for  his 
subject,  "  The  Philosophical  Errors  of  the  Middle 
Ages."  The  day  after  its  delivery  Professor  Long- 
fellow meeting  him  said,  "  Hamlin,  that  was  the  best 
oration  I  ever  heard  from  lips  studential." 

8.  Hamlin's  Steam-engine.  —  The  visitor  will  be 
shown  to-day  in  the  Cabinet  of  Bowdoin  College  the 
complete  condensing  engine  with  condenser  and  air 
pump,  which  was  made  by  Cyrus  Hamlin  during  his 
student  days.  Hearing  Professor  Smyth  lecture  on 
the  steam-engine  and  learning  that  but  a  few  had 
ever  seen  one,  he  said  to  his  professor,  "  I  believe  I 
could  make  an  engine  that  would  make  any  one  see 
its  working."  The  professor  said,  "  Hamlin,  I  wish 
you  would  try  it."  In  speaking  of  this  conversation 
with  Professor  Smyth  Dr.  Hamlin  writes :  "  In  two 
minutes  I  embarked  in  a  scheme  which  has  had  an  in- 
fluence upon  all  my  life.  I  was  in  for  it  and  I  resolved 
to  do  or  die."     The  Honorable  Neal  Dow,  then  a 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  I25 

young  man  in  Portland,  took  a  deep  interest  in  the 
scheme  and  rendered  some  assistance.  In  about  three 
months  HamUn's  steam-engine,  the  first  ever  made  in 
Maine,  was  completed  and  the  college  gave  him  $175 
for  it  as  a  model  to  be  placed  among  the  philosophical 
apparatus.  It  is  now  in  the  Cleaveland  Cabinet, 
Bowdoin  College. 

In  Bangor  Seminary.  —  i.  Having  graduated 
with  the  highest  honors  and  having  decided  to  enter 
upon  missionary  work,  he  turned  his  face  toward 
Bangor  Theological  Seminary.  Professor  Pond  and 
Professor  Leonard  Woods,  both  of  whom  had  a  na- 
tional reputation  for  scholarship,  were  the  great 
teachers  in  Bangor  at  this  time,  and  they  took  a  deep 
interest  in  their  pupil,  whose  exceptional  talents  were 
quickly  recognized.  His  first  theological  year  passed 
with  nothing  worthy  of  remark.  He  writes,  "  I  felt 
sure  that  I  stood  in  right  relations  to  God  and  man  in 
my  African  outlook."  At  this  time  his  heart  was  set 
upon  the  life  of  a  missionary  explorer  in  the  Dark 
Continent,  and  if  this  plan  had  been  carried  out,  who 
knows  but  that  his  name  would  have  gone  down  in 
history  by  the  side  of  that  of  Livingstone ! 

2.  His  Lectures.  —  During  his  second  year,  in  ad- 
dition to  his  seminary  work  he  delivered  a  course  of 
lectures  upon  physical  science  with  experiments  in  the 
Classical  School  for  which  he  received  $70.  He  also 
delivered  a  lecture  upon  "  Africa,  its  Resources  and 
Prospects,"  which  was  well  received  and  afterwards 
published  in  The  Literary  and  Theological  Review. 

3.  Missionary  Work  in  New  Ireland.  —  Mr.  Ham- 
lin was  so  full  of  the  missionary  spirit  that  he  could 
not  wait  until  he  reached  a  foreign  land  before  be- 


126  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

ginning  work.  In  the  neighborhood  of  the  Seminary 
there  were  500  Irishmen  who  had  come  to  the  city 
to  find  work,  but  who,  on  account  of  the  severe  winter 
with  its  deep  snow,  were  left  in  great  distress  in  their 
shanties,  which  were  not  fit  for  human  beings.  Their 
priest  was  a  drunkard,  and  there  was  hardly  a  man 
among  them  who  was  temperate.  Hamlin  went  one 
day  to  this  settlement  when  the  thermometer  was 
twenty-four  below  zero,  and  finding  several  families 
without  food  and  practically  without  clothing,  he  se- 
cured at  once  from  his  friends  a  load  of  dry  wood 
and  plenty  of  clothing,  bedding  and  food.  This  opened 
a  missionary  effort  among  these  needy  people,  which 
was  continued  notwithstanding  the  bitter  opposition 
of  the  priest  and  which  resulted  in  great  good. 

4.  Engaged  in  Public  Debate.  —  At  this  time  it  was 
proposed  by  some  to  build  a  theater  in  Bangor.  There 
was  much  opposition  by  the  good  people  of  the  town, 
and  it  was  proposed  that  the  question  be  discussed  be- 
fore the  Lyceum.  Mr.  Hamlin  was  asked  to  uphold 
the  negative,  a  young  lawyer  taking  the  affirmative. 
Hamlin  read  Plato,  Rousseau  and  all  the  other  books 
upon  the  subject  and  held  his  own  with  the  brilliant 
lawyer  for  three  nights.  It  was  believed  that  this 
discussion  resulted  in  the  postponement  of  a  theater 
in  Bangor. 

5.  Offers  Himself  to  the  American  Board.  —  Early 
in  his  senior  year  Hamlin  wrote  to  the  Prudential 
Committee  of  the  American  Board,  stating  that  he 
was  ready  for  any  field,  but  expressing  a  special  in- 
terest in  China,  as  Africa  had  been  declared  out  of 
the  question  chiefly  on  grounds  of  health.  Moreover, 
one  of  the  secretaries  had  told  him  that  he  might 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  12/ 

hope  for  an  appointment  to  China.  During  the  month 
of  February  he  received  a  letter  from  Secretary  Arm- 
strong informing  him  that  he  had  been  appointed  to 
Constantinople  and  to  educational  work.  He  shut 
himself  up  in  his  room  and  began  to  study  the  map 
and  then  said :  "  What  does  this  mean  ?  It  means 
a  good  work  and  excellent  and  noble  associates, 
Goodell,  Dwight,  Schauffler  and  Homes."  He  felt 
well  acquainted  with  them  from  the  reading  of  their 
letters  in  The  Missionary  Herald.  He  then  added : 
"  The  climate  is  unsurpassed.  If  Henrietta  Jackson 
has  a  predisposition  to  pulmonary  disease,  she  will 
live  longer  there  than  here ;  and  now,  as  I  live,  I 
will  know  from  her  own  self  whether  she  will  go  with 
me  and  share  my  life  in  that  great  country."  And  so 
his  choice  both  as  to  field  and  life  companion  was 
settled. 

A  Year's  Delay.  —  i.  It  must  have  been  a  great 
trial  to  this  restless  soul,  full  of  missionary  zeal  and 
longing  to  begin  his  life  work  in  Turkey,  to  find  the 
American  Board,  for  financial  reasons,  unable  to  send 
him  out  at  once.  It  was  a  full  year  before  he  was 
able  to  sail,  but  he  found  plenty  to  do  in  the  mean- 
time and  perhaps  afterwards  saw  that  this  extra  year 
spent  in  the  home-land  only  fitted  him  the  better  for 
the  great  work  which  God  had  for  him  to  do.  Under 
the  direction  of  the  secretaries  Hamlin  delivered  lec- 
tures upon  foreign  missions  in  various  parts  of  New 
England,  especially  in  Massachusetts,  New  Hamp- 
shire and  Maine.  In  this  way  he  made  not  only 
friends  for  the  cause  which  he  advocated,  but  not  a  few 
personal  friends  who  followed  him  with  their  prayers 
and  gifts  during  all  the  years  of  his  missionary  service. 


128  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

2.  Supplies  the  Payson  Church.  —  Being  earnestly 
invited  to  supply  the  church  in  Portland  where  Ed- 
ward Payson  had  spent  his  life  and  where  young 
Hamlin  was  converted,  he  consented  to  do  so,  think- 
ing it  would  only  be  for  a  few  weeks.  He  continued 
to  preach  here  and  perform  all  the  parish  duties  for 
seven  months.  Having  received  a  hearty  call  to  be- 
come the  pastor  of  Union  Church  in  Worcester,  Mass., 
Mr,  Hamlin  made  reply  in  these  characteristic  words, 
"  Not  until  the  Board  sends  me  notice  of  my  unso- 
licited release,  will  I  allow  any  such  propopsition  to  be 
made." 

3.  His  Marriage  and  Ordination.  —  He  was  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Jackson  of  Dorset,  Vt.,  a  woman  of  rare 
gifts,  on  September  3,  1838.  The  ladies  of  the  Port- 
land Church,  where  his  ministry  had  been  greatly 
blessed  to  the  people,  sent  him  a  wedding  suit.  He 
was  ordained  October  3,  1838,  in  Portland  at  the  close 
of  the  meeting  of  the  American  Board,  which  was 
held  in  the  Payson  Church. 

Commencement  of  Missionary  Work.  —  In  Jan- 
uary, 1839,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hamlin  arrived  in  Constan- 
tinople, where  they  received  a  most  cordial  welcome 
from  the  missionaries,  Drs.  Goodell,  Schauffler  and 
Homes  and  their  wives. 

I.  Language  Study.  —  The  second  day  after  land- 
ing, the  Hamlins  began  the  study  of  the  language 
with  Avedis  Der  Sahakin  as  teacher.  There  were 
signs  of  an  awakening  in  the  Armenian  Church  all 
over  the  Empire,  and  these  devoted  Americans  were 
anxious  to  enter  upon  their  work  at  the  earliest  possible 
moment.  Their  faithful  teacher  was  soon  driven  away, 
and  no  Armenian  dared  enter  their  house.     They  at 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  1 29 

once  began  the  study  of  Modern  Greek  and  French, 
which  with  the  knowledge  of  languages  already  pos- 
sessed, were  soon  mastered.  Mr.  Hamlin's  motto  was : 
"  Keep  to  work;  if  cut  off  from  one  thing  take  the 
next." 

2.  Russia's  Hostility.  —  It  was  at  this  time  that 
Mesrobe  Taliatine,  a  linguist,  poet,  historian  and  Chris- 
tian teacher,  was  carried  off  to  Siberia  by  order  of  the 
Russian  Ambassador.  Dr.  Schauffler  made  protest 
to  the  Ambassador,  stating  that  all  the  missionaries 
knew  him  to  be  a  good  man  and  they  were  ready  to  go 
bail  for  him.  The  Ambassador  replied :  "  I  might 
as  well  tell  you  now,  Mr.  Schauffler,  that  the  Em- 
peror of  Russia,  who  is  my  master,  will  never  allow 
Protestantism  to  set  its  foot  in  Turkey."  Dr.  Schauf- 
fler made  the  famous  reply :  "  Your  Excellency,  the 
Kingdom  of  Christ,  who  is  my  Master,  will  never  ask 
the  Emperor  of  all  the  Russias  where  it  may  set 
its  foot."  From  this  time-  down  to  the  present  hour 
the  attitude  of  Russia  toward  the  work  of  the  Amer- 
ican missionaries  in  Turkey  has  been  most  unfriendly. 

3.  Conversion  of  Marcus  Brown.  —  It  was  at  this 
time  that  a  profane  American  sailor  was  found,  ap- 
parently dying  in  the  pains  of  cholera.  Mr.  Hamlin 
and  his  associates  cared  for  him  and  saved  his  life ; 
afterward  they  led  him  to  Christ.  A  year  later  this 
sailor  offered  the  following  prayer  in  Father  Taylor's 
Church,  Boston :  "  O  God,  I  thank  Thee  for  the  Amer- 
ican  missionaries.  When  I  was  dying,  a  poor  blas- 
phemous dog,  in  Constantinople,  Thou  didst  send  Thy 
servants,  Hamlin  and  Goodell,  to  save  me,  soul  and 
body."  While  Hamlin  had  gone  to  save  the  people 
of  Turkey,  God  used  him  in  this  instance,  as  He  did 


130  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

many  times  afterward,  to  save  one  of  his  own  country- 
men. 

4.  Lozvering  Skies.  —  Reports  were  heard  on  every 
hand  that  the  missionaries  were  all  to  be  driven  out  of 
the  Empire.  Not  only  the  Turks  but  the  Greeks, 
Armenians  and  Catholics  as  well  were  against  them. 
The  situation  was  most  critical.  Even  the  sanguine  Dr. 
Goodell  became  most  anxious.  The  American  Minis- 
ter, Commodore  Porter,  advised  the  missionaries  to 
retire  from  the  country  at  once.  There  was  not  much 
that  the  missionaries  could  do  at  this  critical  period 
but  continue  daily  in  prayer  and  wait  for  deliverance. 
While  they  were  waiting  before  the  Lord,  the  Sultan 
died,  his  army  was  defeated  and  his  entire  fleet  cap- 
tured. The  young  Abdul  Medjid  ascended  the  throne 
and  England  took  the  lead,  rather  than  Russia,  in  set- 
tling the  questions  of  the  war.  Daniel  Webster,  then 
Secretary  of  State,  sent  a  message  touching  the  rights 
of  American  citizens  in  Turkey  including  the  mis- 
sionaries, which  is  remembered  to  this  day. 

Bebek  Seminary.  —  i.  In  the  winter  of  1839-40  it 
was  decided  by  the  station  to  establish  a  Seminary. 
After  long  search  a  house  which  had  been  occupied  by 
an  Englishman  was  secured  for  the  school.  On  the 
opening  day  there  were  but  two  pupils,  though  it  was 
not  long  before  there  were  twelve.  Board  and  instruc- 
tion were  free,  but  every  pupil  provided  himself  with 
bedding,  clothing,  books  and  stationery. 

2.  Workshop  and  Philosophical  Apparatus.  —  Mr. 
Hamlin,  true  to  his  mechanical  genius,  fitted  up  a 
workshop  and  made  all  sorts  of  tools  and  much  of 
the  philosophical  apparatus  used  in  his  class  experi- 
ments.    The  Moslem  Orientals  attribute  all  mechan- 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  I3I 

ical  skill  and  invention  to  Satan.  Visitors  came  in 
large  numbers,  not  only  to  see  the  marvels  of  elec- 
tricity and  other  experiments  in  the  laboratory,  but 
also  in  many  cases  to  make  inquiries  concerning  the 
Christian  faith. 

3.  Opposition  from  the  Patriarch  and  Others.  —  One 
afternoon  a  shabby-looking  personage,  bent  double  with 
rheumatism,  called  on  Mr.  Hamlin  and  said :  "  The 
Patriarch's  Secretary  sends  his  compliments  to  you 
and  wishes  you  to  know  that  his  holiness  has  the  names 
of  your  students  and  their  parents.  To-morrow  they 
will  be  called  to  the  patriarchate  and  thrown  into 
prison.  Nishan  tells  you  this  that  you  may  think  what 
to  do,  and  he  entrusts  himself  to  your  honor."  After 
saying  this  he  disappeared.  Mr.  Hamlin  called  the 
students  together  and  told  them  of  the  approaching 
storm  and  urged  them  to  go  at  once  to  their  homes. 
He  advised  them  to  go  in  the  morning  with  their 
parents  and  carry  his  compliments  to  the  Patriarch 
and  say  that  "  Mr.  Hamlin  had  come  to  assist  his 
people,  not  to  contend  against  him,  and  that  he  had 
closed  the  Seminary  and  dismissed  every  pupil."  They 
went  as  he  suggested  and  bore  the  message  to  his 
holiness  who  stroked  his  beard  and  said :  "  Mr.  Ham- 
lin is  a  good  and  wise  man  to  do  this  thing.  It  relieves 
me  of  the  unpleasant  duty  of  using  force.  Now  come 
and  kiss  my  hand  and  go  home  with  my  paternal  bene- 
diction," After  a  vacation  of  a  few  weeks  Mr.  Hamlin 
went  quietly  on  with  his  school  with  more  pupils  than 
ever.  In  speaking  of  this,  Dr.  Hamlin  writes,  "  It 
seemed  to  me  that  I  was  divinely  led  to  do  instanta- 
neously the  right  thing,  when  there  was  no  time  for 
reflection."    The  Greeks  and  Armenians,  however,  did 


132  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

not  relish  the  idea  of  having  a  heretic  among  them. 
They  threatened  to  drive  Mr.  HamHn  away  by  force. 
The  gamins  threw  stones  from  their  hiding-places  on 
the  hill  and  stoned  the  house  causing  the  roof  to  leak. 
When  at  length  his  wife  was  hid  he  went  to  the  police 
and  made  complaint.  This  frightened  the  rascals  and 
there  was  quiet  for  a  time. 

4.  Enlarging  the  Seminary.  —  In  view  of  the  growth 
of  the  school  the  station  voted  to  seek  a  larger  build- 
ing. In  1841  it  was  removed  to  the  Demirgi  Bashi's 
house  in  the  same  village.  The  grounds  were  ample 
and  the  view  overlooking  the  Bosporus  was  all  that 
could  be  desired.  The  Armenian  Patriarch  still  kept 
up  his  opposition  and  now  and  then  would  succeed  in 
persuading  a  pupil  to  leave  the  school,  but  in  nearly 
every  instance  they  would  return  after  a  brief  period. 

5.  Rev.  G.  W.  Wood  becomes  Hamlin's  Associate. 
—  The  work  needed  more  teachers  and  the  Board 
sent  Rev.  G.  W.  Wood,  a  man  of  beautiful  spirit  and 
fine  scholarship,  who  lifted  many  burdens  from  the 
overloaded  shoulders  of  Mr.  Hamlin.  For  eight  years 
Mr.  Wood  continued  in  the  school,  and  his  services 
are  mentioned  by  Dr.  Hamlin  in  these  words,  "  He  was 
an  able,  faithful,  honored  and  beloved  coadjutor."  It 
is  an  interesting  fact  that  both  of  these  noble  men 
lived  to  attend  together  the  recent  Ecumenical  Mis- 
sionary Conference,  were  warm  friends  to  the  last  and 
died  about  the  same  time. 

6.  Sir  Stratford  Canning.  —  England,  noted  for 
great  diplomats,  has  had  but  few  men  who  rank  with 
Sir  Stratford  Canning,  who  was  ambassador  at  this 
time.  He  exhibited  his  courage  and  powers  as  a  states- 
man and  diplomat,  ^hen  the  head  of  the  Armenian 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  133 

martyr,  Hovakim,  was  borne  with  defiant  air  through 
the  streets.  He  succeeded  without  any  sympathy  or  aid 
from  the  Russian  Ambassador  in  forcing  the  Sultan  to 
give  his  pledge  that  no  Christian  apostate  should  in 
future  be  executed.  In  speaking  of  Canning's  noble 
act,  Dr.  Hamlin  says,  "  The  Turks  now  well  under- 
stand that  any  repetition  of  that  scene  would  involve 
the  expulsion  of  the  Government  from  Constantinople." 
7.  Opposition  to  the  Workshop.  —  There  were  some 
missionaries  who  feared  that  manual  training  would 
"  secularize  the  missionary  work."  This  department 
did  not  at  that  time  have  the  sanction  of  the  Prudential 
Committee  in  Boston.  Secretary  Anderson  was  es- 
pecially opposed  to  this  department  of  the  Seminary. 
At  one  of  the  station  meetings,  when  Hamlin  was 
absent,  it  was  voted  that  the  Seminary  workshop  be 
closed,  the  material  and  tools  be  sold  and  the  result  put 
into  the  treasury  of  the  mission.  This  was  a  great 
blow  to  him,  for  his  heart  was  set  upon  this  line  of 
effort ;  but  he  was  loyal  to  the  majority  and  resolved 
upon  immediate  compliance.  The  students  were  as- 
tonished when  they  saw  their  teacher  getting  ready  to 
dismantle  the  shop.  He  at  once  sent  a  note  to  the 
station  saying  that,  while  surprised  at  their  decision, 
he  was  going  to  comply  and  had  begun  preparations 
for  the  sale  of  tools  and  materials.  He  declined,  how- 
ever, to  pay  the  money  into  the  treasury,  since  he  had 
not  received  the  funds  for  this  department  from  the 
Board  but  from  personal  friends.  Dr.  Hamlin  then 
requested  the  station  to  take  in  hand  the  forty-two 
students  who  had  no  way  to  provide  themselves  with 
clothing  without  the  workshop.  To  quote  his  own 
words :  "  I  cannot  attend  to  this  clothing  affair  without 


134  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

injuring  my  moral  position.  Do  not  expect  of  me 
the  impossible.  I  give  that  department  entirely  into 
your  hands."  For  a  time  absolute  silence  followed  the 
reading  of  Dr.  Hamlin's  note ;  then  Dr.  Goodell  burst 
into  a  laugh  and  moved  that  "  brother  Hamlin  take 
his  own  way  to  keep  out  rags." 

8.  Mr.  Arthur  Stoddard  of  Glasgozv.  —  It  was  a 
great  surprise  to  Mr.  Hamlin  to  receive  from  Mr. 
Stoddard  a  very  sharp  letter  about  his  "  secular  oc- 
cupation," who  had  written,  "  Let  the  shoe-maker 
stick  to  his  last,  and  let  the  missionary  stick  to  his 
spiritual  work."  In  his  reply  Dr.  Hamlin  informed 
his  friend  that  he  could  not  see  from  Scotland  to 
Constantinople,  and  that  the  reason  he  felt  as  he  did 
was  his  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  work.  In  due  time 
Mr.  Stoddard  wrote  in  a  very  different  spirit,  saying 
that  he  had  "  misjudged  the  case  entirely,"  and  he  en- 
closed a  check  for  $500.  This  was  the  beginning  of  a 
warm  friendship  which  continued  through  life.  One 
of  the  last  things  which  Mr.  Stoddard  did  before  his 
death  was  to  send  Dr.  Hamlin  a  check  for  $1,000  "  to 
lighten  the  burden  of  age." 

9.  The  First  Protestant  Burial.  —  The  first  death  in 
the  little  Protestant  community  was  that  of  a  venerable 
and  dignified  man  named  Oscan.  He  had  lost  property 
and  position  by  the  stand  he  had  taken,  but  in  his 
death  he  was  very  happy  and  expressed  the  hope  and 
expectation  that  the  gospel  would  spread  through  the 
Empire.  The  enemies  of  the  Evangelical  movement 
boasted  that  his  body  should  never  be  buried.  It  was 
an  occasion  of  great  anxiety.  All  the  male  members 
of  the  Church  and  others  in  sympathy  with  them  to 
the  number  of  200  gathered  to  do  honor  to  the  dead 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  135 

and  to  guard  his  remains.  The  American  Minister, 
Mr.  Carr,  took  steps  to  prevent  the  mob  from  carrying 
out  their  threat.  Troops  were  on  hand,  and  although 
thousands  of  angry  men  were  on  the  street  the  casket 
was  placed  in  the  grave  and  the  benediction  was  pro- 
nounced without  any  outbreak.  Upon  the  return  of 
the  procession  there  burst  upon  them  a  howling  mob 
hurling  brickbats  and  stones.  Dr.  Dwight  and  a  few 
of  the  Armenian  converts  were  hit,  but  no  one  was 
seriously  hurt.  This  was  one  of  many  such  experi- 
ences which  the  missionaries  had  during  those  pioneer 
days  in  Turkey.  Indeed,  even  now  mobs  and  perse- 
cution and  massacre  are  not  infrequent  in  the  land 
of  the  Sultan. 

lo.  Relief  for  the  Persecuted  Armenians.  —  The 
success  of  the  workshop  enabled  Dr.  Hamlin  to  give 
employment  to  those  having  families  who  could  not 
secure  work.  One  man  was  established  in  the  manu- 
facture of  camphine  as  a  burning  fluid.  Others  were 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  stovepipe.  Still  others 
were  taught  to  make  rat  traps  of  simple  construction 
for  which  there  was  a  large  sale.  Among  the  other 
industries  introduced  and  successfully  carried  on  by 
this  versatile  missionary  we  may  name  bookbinding, 
printing  and  the  making  of  "  a  certain  kind  of  prints 
for  women's  headdresses." 

A  New  Enterprise.  —  i .  Learning  that  among  the 
Chapters  of  Privileges  it  was  stated  that  "  Every  for- 
eign colony  settling  at  the  Capital  should  have  the 
right  to  its  own  mill  and  bakery  free  from  interfer- 
ence from  the  guilds,"  Dr.  Hamlin  regarded  it  as 
an  open  door,  and  he  resolved  to  establish  a  mill  and  a 
bakery.     He  mentioned  his  plan  to  Mr.  Charles  Ede, 


136  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

an  English  banker,  who  said :  "  Get  your  firman,  and 
I  will  advance  all  the  money  you  want.  A  steam  mill 
and  bakery  may  be  a  gold  mine."  In  connection  with 
this  conversation,  which  took  place  upon  the  Bosporus, 
Dr.  Hamlin  writes,  "  The  memory  of  that  hour  on  that 
steamer's  deck  is  imperishable."  But  even  he,  san- 
guine as  he  was,  could  not  foresee  what  wonderful 
results  would  come  from  the  word  of  encouragement 
given  by  the  banker. 

2.  Vieivs  of  the  Station.  —  When  this  matter  was 
brought  before  the  band  of  missionaries,  none  except 
Drs.  Schauffler  and  Everett  had  any  confidence  in  it. 
They  asked,  "  Do  you  know  milling,  bread-making, 
steam-enginery?"  When  he  answered,  "No,"  they 
said :  *'  This  thought  is  absurd ;  you  will  become  in- 
volved in  debt,  and  injure  your  own  reputation  and 
that  of  the  mission."  The  reply  of  Dr.  Hamlin  was 
worthy  of  his  heroic  soul :  "  The  missionaries  live  in 
safety  and  comfort;  they,  —  the  Armenians,  —  in  pov- 
erty, contempt  and  danger,  I  am  going  to  do  more 
than  I  have  yet  done  to  help  them.  Mr.  Ede  assumes 
all  the  financial  risks,  and  as  to  my  reputation,  let  me 
fail  in  trying  to  do  something  rather  than  to  sit  still 
and  do  nothing.  But  I  shall  not  fail."  After  some 
discussion,  the  following  vote  was  passed  with  the  un- 
derstanding that  no  record  of  it  would  be  made  on  the 
minutes :  "  While  we  do  not  have  confidence  in  the 
measure,  we  leave  Brother  Hamlin  to  act  upon  his 
own  responsibility." 

3.  The  Viezvs  of  the  Board.  —  Dr.  Hamlin  peti- 
tioned the  Prudential  Committee  to  give  him  credit  for 
$600  to  purchase  from  a  firm  in  Boston  the  millstone, 
bolt,   duster,  etc.,   promising  payment  within  a  year 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  137 

at  six  per  cent.  Dr.  Anderson  thought  it  very  strange 
that  the  Board  was  asked  to  go  into  the  miUing  busi- 
ness, for  which  they  had  no  precedent.  John  Tappan, 
Esq.,  a  member  of  the  Prudential  Committee,  offered 
to  pay  the  entire  bill  from  his  own  pocket,  and  Dr. 
Anderson  made  no  further  opposition.  It  was  not  un- 
til years  afterward  that  Dr.  Hamlin  learned  that  but 
for  the  sympathy  and  generosity  of  Mr.  Tappan  the 
request  would  have  been  vetoed. 

4.  The  Work  Expanding.  —  About  two  months  after 
the  mill  was  opened  the  patronage  —  notwithstanding 
combinations  against  it  —  was  as  much  as  they  could 
attend  to.  There  was  a  constant  demand  for  the  flour, 
as  well  as  for  the  bread  which  Dr.  Hamlin  and  his 
pupils  were  making.  At  the  end  of  the  first  year  Mr. 
Ede  was  repaid  one-half  the  money  furnished  and  eight 
per  cent,  for  its  use.  In  view  of  the  loss  made  in  ex- 
perimenting this  was  a  fine  showing.  It  gave  employ- 
ment to  a  considerable  number  of  Protestant  Arme- 
nians, —  who  were  thrown  out  of  work  when  they 
joined  the  Evangelical  movement,  —  as  well  as  the  stu- 
dents. 

5.  Hard  Experiences  with  the  Mill. — At  first  it 
worked  well,  but  after  a  time  the  stones  needed  dress- 
ing, A  dozen  steel  picks,  which  came  with  the  mill, 
were  sent  to  an  English  blacksmith,  but  "  he  made 
them  so  hard  that  they  broke  like  glass,  the  next 
time  so  soft  that  they  did  no  execution."  Dr.  Hamlin 
saw  at  once  that  he  must  learn  to  temper  those  picks 
or  the  enterprise  would  be  a  failure.  He  shut  himself 
up  "  with  his  forge,  with  charcoal,  a  can  of  olive  oil 
and  Ure's  '  Dictionary  of  the  Arts.' "  After  consid- 
erable experimenting  he  caught  the  right  shade,  and 


138  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

this  perplexing  problem  was  solved.  Writing  of  this 
experience  he  says :  "There  is  something  divine  in  these 
occult  causes  of  matter  and  their  relations  to  man.  He 
who  constituted  nature  constituted  also  the  mind,  and 
we  ought  to  worship  God  in  every  triumph  over  na- 
ture's laws,  so  called." 

6.  The  men,  including  students,  were  industrious 
and  intelligent.  They  were  well  paid,  but  it  was  dis- 
tinctly understood  that  "  no  lazy  person  would  be  tol- 
erated in  the  camp,  any  more  than  a  leper  in  Israel." 
Dr.  Hamlin  informed  the  station  that  he  would  give 
work  in  milling,  baking,  or  distributing,  and  that 
there  was  no  further  need  of  money  for  any  who 
wanted  to  work  for  a  living ;  "  and  for  the  rest  let 
them  starve."  It  seemed  a  severe  gospel,  but  it  was 
undoubtedly  needed,  and  as  a  result  the  lazy  were 
weeded  out. 

The  Crimean  War.  —  i.  A  Bread  Conspiracy.  — 
In  the  Autumn  of  1853  the  war  between  England  and 
Russia  began  over  the  Crimea.  Thousands  of  troops 
began  to  arrive  and  the  English  established  a  hospi- 
tal at  Scutari.  The  fame  of  Dr.  Hamlin's  flour  and 
bread  reached  the  ears  of  Commissary-General  Smith, 
who  at  once  made  a  contract  which  called  for  several 
thousand  pounds  a  day  for  that  hospital  alone.  When 
the  purveyor  and  head  physician  saw  that  the  demand 
for  bread  was  so  great,  they  demanded  that  Dr.  Hamlin 
should  give  them  a  share  of  the  profits.  They  in- 
timated that  it  would  uot  be  well  for  him  to  refuse. 
A  conspiracy  was  formed ;  the  bread  was  heated  to 
an  intolerable  temperature  and  of  course  it  fermented 
and  was  reported  as  "  bad  bread."  The  contract  was 
thrown  up  at  once  and  an  appeal  was  made  to  Lord 


CYRUS   HAMLIN  139 

Raglan  at  Sebastopol.  A  despatch  was  at  once  sent 
by  him,  reheving  Dr.  HamHn  of  the  penalty  named 
in  the  contract,  ordering  the  hospital  to  pay  for  every 
loaf  condemned  and  also  ordering  the  bread  supply 
to  a  new  competition.  The  result  was  that  Dr.  Ham- 
lin was  saved  from  great  financial  loss,  for  flour 
had  risen  fifty  per  cent.,  and  Dr.  Menzies  was  con- 
demned as  the  chief  of  the  conspiracy. 

2.  It  was  at  this  time,  when  the  hospitals  were  in 
disorder  and  filth,  that  Florence  Nightingale  came 
with  forty  assistants.  Very  soon  this  noble  woman 
transformed  the  hospital.  She  divided  her  forces  into 
night  watches  and  there  were  competent  nurses  on 
duty  in  the  wards  all  night  long.  Every  want  was 
attended  to  and  every  thing  was  done  to  relieve  pain. 
The  death  rate  was  reduced  at  once  as  a  result  of 
woman's  care  and  sympathy,  and  brutal  treatment  from 
surgeons  ceased.  Dr.  Hamlin,  speaking  of  this  hero- 
ine, writes :  "  Her  clear  views,  her  executive  ability, 
her  unselfish  and  absolute  devotion  to  her  work,  gave 
her  a  position  of  peculiar  power.  She  seemed  to  me 
a  person  in  perfect  health,  graceful  and  agile  in  form 
and  movement,  with  the  light  of  a  high  and  holy  pur- 
pose pervading  her  whole  personality." 

3.  The  Army  Demands  More  Bread.  —  As  the  num- 
ber of  troops  increased.  General  Smith  sent  an  orderly 
to  Dr.  Hamlin  informing  him  that  he  wanted  him  to 
supply  with  bread  the  entire  camp  at  Hyder  Pasha.  A 
contract  was  made  that  in  thirty  days  he  would  begin 
to  furnish  from  twelve  to  twenty  thousand  pounds  per 
day.  By  heroic  efforts  the  ovens  were  built  and  ready 
in  ten  days.  Dr.  Hamlin  was  careful  to  put  a  clause 
into  the  contract  that  the  bread   for   Sunday  would 


140  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

be  delivered  Saturday  evening  —  "  as  at  the  hospital, 
so  at  the  camp."  When  the  first  delivery  of  Sunday 
bread  was  made  on  Saturday  evening,  as  was  antici- 
pated the  provost  of  the  camp  said,  ''  Dr.  Hamlin  you 
will  take  every  loaf  right  back  and  bring  the  bread  in 
the  morning."  He  thought  to  frighten  the  missionary 
with  his  blasphemy  and  threats  to  pitch  every  loaf 
into  the  Marmora,  but  he  had  attacked  the  wrong 
man.  Dr.  Hamlin  replied,  "  I  leave  you  the  bread  — 
eight  thousand  loaves  —  and  you  can  do  what  you 
please  with  it."  In  relating  this  experience  Dr.  Ham- 
lin says :  "  H  Christian  men  will  stand  conscientiously 
firm  to  the  Sabbath,  they  will  very  rarely  meet  with 
any  insuperable  obstacles  to  carrying  out  their  de- 
termination." 

4.  Invented  a  IVashing  Machine.  —  After  the  battle 
of  Inkerman  in  November,  1854,  several  hundred 
wounded  and  sick  soldiers,  almost  destitute  of  proper 
clothing  and  suffering  from  the  cold,  were  sent  to 
Constantinople.  Upon  investigation  it  was  found  that 
their  clothing  was  full  of  Crimean  lice,  and  that  the 
soldiers  preferred  to  suffer  for  lack  of  clothes  rather 
than  from  the  vermin.  The  women  who  were  found  to 
undertake  the  task  of  washing  these  infested  garments 
soon  fled  and  declared  that  they  would  never  enter  the 
place  again.  Dr.  Hamlin  was  equal  to  the  emergency, 
and  by  the  next  day  he  had  transformed  some  empty 
oak  beer-casks  into  washing  machines.  After  much 
effort  and  persuasion  he  secured  some  women  who 
came  to  his  assistance.  He  took  up  the  articles  with 
tongs,  put  them  in 'the  machine,  turned  on  the  water 
and  in  six  minutes  the  water  ran  off  with  a  filthy, 
muddy  color.     Pure  water  was  added,  and  in  a  short 


CYRUS   HAMLIN  I4I 

time  the  articles  were  taken  out  transformed.  With 
six  machines  and  a  force  of  thirty  persons  3,000  ar- 
ticles were  put  through  in  one  day.  In  speaking  of  the 
invention  of  the  washing  machine,  Dr.  Hamlin  writes : 
"  I  am  told  that  my  dear  college  friend,  Dr.  Bartol, 
has  humorously  assigned  to  me  sixteen  professions.  I 
have  never  seen  the  list  which  his  brilliant  imagination 
has  produced,  but  I  presume  he  did  not  include  what 
I  am  most  proud  of,  the  profession  of  a  washer- 
woman." 

5.  Dr.  Hamlin's  Cholera  Remedy.  —  In  1855  the 
cholera  broke  out  and  many  deaths  were  reported.  Dr. 
Hamlin  prepared  a  remedy  and,  filling  a  carpet  bag 
with  his  medicines,  he  gave  a  boatman  twenty  times  the 
usual  price  to  carry  him  over  to  Scutari.  He  found 
the  men  in  the  bakery  utterly  demoralized.  Under  his 
treatment  the  sick  all  recovered.  In  the  hospital  there 
were  about  100  deaths,  among  them  six  doctors.  This 
is  but  one  of  many  examples  of  the  skill  and  courage 
of  Dr.  Hamlin  in  meeting  great  emergencies. 

6.  Building  Mission  Churches.  —  At  this  time  it  was 
found  that  the  net  proceeds  of  the  various  industries 
which  Dr.  Hamlin  had  started  amounted  to  more  than 
$25,000.  Dr.  Anderson  would  not  receive  it  into  the 
treasury  of  the  American  Board,  because  he  thought 
that  it  would  bring  discredit  on  the  mission  to  have 
one  of  its  missionaries  make  money  at  that  rate ;  then, 
too,  he  had  opposed  all  these  movements  from  the 
beginning.  With  the  cordial  agreement  of  the  mis- 
sionaries Dr.  Hamlin  paid  every  dollar  of  this  money 
into  a  Church-Building  Fund.  It  helped  build  thirteen 
churches  with  schoolhouses  annexed.  And  thus  it  was 
that  these  industrial  schemes  had  vindicated  themselves. 


142  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

Dr.  Hamlin  Visits  England  and  America.  —  i. 
After  eighteen  years  of  untiring  work,  Dr.  and  Mrs. 
Hamlin  with  their  children  sailed  for  America.  He 
spent  a  few  weeks  in  England  delivering  addresses 
under  the  auspices  of  the  Turkish  Missions  Aid  So- 
ciety, which  had  been  formed  in  Dr.  Hamlin's  study 
in  Constantinople.  He  was  received  by  the  Earl  of 
Shaftesbury  and  by  many  of  the  most  distinguished 
people  of  England.  A  note  from  Shaftesbury  con- 
tained these  words :  "  We  are  convinced  that  Bulgaria 
would  be  a  fruitful  field  for  the  labors  of  evan- 
gelical missionaries ;  and  we  are  satisfied  that  to  none 
could  the  work  be  so  safely  confided  as  to  those  who 
have  already  produced  such  happy  results  in  the  Turk- 
ish Empire."  Then  followed  a  pledge  sufficient  to 
support  two  missionaries  for  the  new  mission  in  Bul- 
garia. It  will  be  seen  from  this  that  the  work  of  the 
American  Board  in  Bulgaria  began  as  a  result  of  Dr. 
Hamlin's  conference  with  Shaftesbury. 

2.  During  his  brief  stay  in  America  he  visited  Bos- 
ton, Portland,  Brunswick  and  his  old  home  at  Water- 
ford.  He  was  everywhere  received  with  the  honor 
due  to  one  who  had  already  earned  a  place  among 
the  foremost  living  missionaries.  Everywhere  he  had 
to  speak  upon  the  Crimean  War,  which  had  just  closed, 
and  was  always  greeted  with  crowded  assemblies. 

The  Founding  of  Robert  College.  —  As  it  had 
been  decided  by  the  Mission  that  Bebek  Seminary 
should  be  removed  to  Marsovan,  Dr.  Hamlin,  upon  his 
return  from  America,  resigned  his  connection  with  the 
Board  in  May,  i860,  and  in  conjunction  with  Mr. 
Christopher  R.  Robert  of  New  York  began  the  work 
of  founding  a  college  at  Constantinople,  now  known 


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CYRUS    HAMLIN  I43 

the  world  over  as  Robert  College.  It  is  only  true  to 
history  to  say  that  Dr.  Anderson,  Secretary  of  the 
Board,  had  opposed  Dr.  Hamlin  in  all  his  educational 
methods  and  doubtless  the  latter  felt  that  if  a  great 
college  were  built  up  in  Constantinople,  Dr.  Anderson's 
system  of  vernacular  education  could  not  prevail. 

1.  Selecting  the  College  Site.  —  After  examining 
twenty-four  sites,  the  one  overlooking  the  Bosporus  — 
one  of  the  best  in  all  Europe  —  where  the  college  now 
stands  was  decided  upon  and  purchased  for  $7,000. 
The  different  steps  which  were  taken  to  secure  this 
site  are  too  many  to  recite  here.  No  better  location 
could  have  been  secured,  and  the  College  stands  as  a 
landmark  to  people  of  all  nations  as  they  pass  up  that 
beautiful  sheet  of  water. 

2.  The  Design  of  the  College.  —  It  was  the  purpose 
of  the  founders  to  make  this  a  missionary  college  for 
all  languages  and  peoples  in  the  Empire,  but  "  the 
English  language  was  to  be  the  medium  of  study  and 
instruction."  There  are  probably  more  languages  rep- 
resented in  this  college  on  the  Bosporus  than  in  any 
other  similar  institution  in  the  world. 

3.  Effort  to  Secure  Funds.  —  It  was  thought  wise 
for  Dr.  Hamlin  to  visit  America  with  the  hope  that 
a  large  sum,  perhaps  $100,000,  might  be  raised  and  the 
College  be  placed  on  a  firm  financial  foundation  from 
the  start.  When  he  arrived  in  this  country  in  1861, 
the  War  of  the  Rebellion  was  just  breaking  out  and 
men  of  wealth  were  full  of  apprehension  for  fear  lest 
they  might  lose  all  they  had ;  therefore  no  large  sums 
could  be  raised.  However,  Dr.  Hamlin  secured  some 
pledges  and  made  many  friends  for  his  enterprise, 
among  them  Professors  Felton  and  Agassiz  of  Har- 


144  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

vard,  Governor  Washburn  of  Massachusetts  and  others. 
Finally  to  Hamlin's  great  joy  Mr.  Robert  said  one  day : 
"  Yesterday  I  put  $30,000  worth  of  railroad  bonds  into 
the  hands  of  trustees.  You  return  and  erect  the  build- 
ings as  far  as  that  money  will  go.  By  that  time  this 
affair  with  the  South  will  be  finished."  As  the  war 
continued  between  the  South  and  the  North,  Dr.  Ham- 
lin was  fearful  that  Mr.  Robert,  for  financial  or  other 
reasons,  would  abandon  the  enterprise.  He  sent  a 
letter  to  him  every  two  weeks,  recounting  everything 
that  had  been  done.  Mr.  Robert  wrote :  "  We  will 
fight  it  out  to  the  end.  You  and  I,  Dr.  Hamlin,  will 
still  see  this  thing  through."  In  writing  of  Mr. 
Robert  at  this  critical  period.  Dr.  Hamlin  says,  "  He 
was  the  man  for  the  time  and  the  work." 

4.  College  Opens  in  the  Seminary  Building.  —  Since 
it  was  not  possible  on  account  of  various  obstacles  to 
build  at  once,  it  was  decided  to  secure  from  the  Ameri- 
can Board  the  building  now  made  vacant  by  the  re- 
moval of  Bebek  Seminary.  The  building  was  thor- 
oughly repaired  and  the  College  opened  in  1863  with 
four  students.  The  number  soon  increased  to  forty. 
The  College  remained  in  these  quarters  for  eight  years. 

5.  Securing  Permission  to  Build.  —  During  these 
years  Dr.  Hamlin  was  untiring  in  his  efforts  to  secure 
leave  from  the  Government  to  build  upon  the  beautiful 
site  which  had  been  purchased.  Mr.  E.  J.  Morris, 
minister  resident,  was  not  ready  to  take  an  active  part 
in  protecting  the  interests  of  the  College.  Mr.  Morris 
held  that  our  treaty  was  a  commercial  one,  and  he  ac- 
cordingly did  not  feel  any  responsibility  for  a  mis- 
sionary college.  When  Dr.  Hamlin  asked,  "If  the 
question  involved  a  cargo  of  rum  belonging  to  a  mer- 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  145 

chant,  what  would  you  do  ?  ''  he  at  once  made  reply, 
"  I  should  certainly  interfere  in  such  a  case."  Meeting 
with  little  sympathy  from  the  American  Minister,  he 
turned  to  Sir  Henry  Bulwer,  the  English  Ambassador, 
who  took  it  up  with  spirit  and  promised  that  soon  the 
legal  permit  would  be  issued.  Shortly  thereafter  he 
received  a  note  from  Sir  Henry  saying :  "  You  have 
made  an  unwise  bargain  in  purchasing  such  a  prom- 
inent site  on  the  Bosporus.  The  Turks  will  never  allow 
you  to  build  there."  It  was  soon  learned  that  Sir 
Henry  had  taken  a  bribe  of  $50,000  from  the  Khedive 
of  Egypt  to  settle  a  quarrel  he  had  with  the  Sultan. 
The  Grand  Vizier  agreed  to  settle  it  if  Sir  Henry  would 
abandon  three  questions,  one  of  which  was  the  Ameri- 
can College.  This  affair  cost  Sir  Henry  his  place. 
It  would  be  impossible  in  our  brief  space  to  speak  of 
the  many  efforts  which  Dr.  Hamlin  made  through 
Midhat  Pasha,  the  Grand  Vizier,  through  Mr.  Seward, 
Secretary  of  State,  and  others.  The  full  history  of  this 
struggle  to  build  Robert  College  would  fill  a  volume 
and  would  read  like  a  romance.  Few  men  would  have 
had  the  patience,  diplomacy  and  heroism  to  accomplish 
what  many  statesmen  of  the  time,  familiar  with  all  the 
facts,  pronounced  an  impossible  undertaking. 

6.  Visit  of  Admiral  Farragut.  —  It  was  at  this  time 
that  the  great  naval  officer,  fresh  from  the  victory  of 
Mobile  and  New  Orleans,  sailed  into  the  Bosporus  with 
a  few  of  his  war  vessels.  His  coming  awakened  great 
interest  and  moved  the  whole  city.  It  was  destined 
to  settle  the  college  question,  although  he  had  not  gone 
there  with  this  in  view,  and  what  he  did  was  not  fully 
known  until  two  years  afterwards.  While  the  Admiral 
was  in  port.  Dr.  Hamlin  took  his  son  Alfred  down  to 


146  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

see  him.  They  received  a  cordial  welcome.  During 
the  conversation,  when  Dr.  Hamlin  told  him  of  the 
difficulty  he  was  having  in  building  the  college,  he  re- 
plied :  "  I  am  sorry  the  Turks  should  treat  you  so 
unjustly;  but  I  am  not  here  on  any  diplomatic  mis- 
sion." Just  at  that  moment  Dr.  Seropian,  a  friend  of 
the  College,  entered  and  said,  "  You  have  come  here 
just  in  the  nick  of  time  to  help  Dr.  Hamlin  out  of  this 
difficulty."  The  Admiral  again  said,  "  I  have  no 
diplomatic  mission  here."  "  Just  for  that  reason,"  said 
the  doctor,  "  you  can  do  everything.  You  have  only  to 
ask  the  Grand  Vizier,  when  you  dine  with  him,  why 
this  American  College  cannot  be  built ;  that  is  all."  "  I 
will  readily  do  that,"  said  the  Admiral. 

A  few  days  after  Admiral  Farragut  had  dined  with 
the  Grand  Vizier,  Dr.  Hamlin  received  a  note  from  the 
American  Minister  reading  as  follows  :  "  I  congratulate 
you,  Dr.  Hamlin,  on  the  termination  of  your  long  con- 
test with  the  Turkish  Government.  I  have  just  received 
a  note  from  the  Grand  Vizier  saying, '  Tell  Mr.  Hamlin 
he  may  begin  the  building  of  his  college  when  he 
pleases.  And  in  a  few  days  an  imperial  iradc  will  be 
given  him.'  "  In  due  time  the  trade  was  received,  and 
the  college  was  placed  under  the  protection  of  the 
United  States.  To-day  the  American  flag  may  be  seen 
by  all  who  pass  up  the  Bosporus,  proudly  floating 
over  the  main  college  building.  Dr.  Hamlin's  triumph 
was  complete,  but  he  always  felt  that  but  for  the  visit 
of  Admiral  Farragut  success  would  have  been  im- 
possible. 

7.  Building  and  Formal  Opening.  —  Having  staked 
out  the  ground,  the  faculty  and  students  gathered,  and 
every  one  used  a  pick  or  shovel  in  breaking  the  ground. 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  I47 

When  the  work  was  ready  for  the  cornerstone,  a  great 
assembly  gathered  on  the  fourth  of  July,  1869,  and 
addresses  were  made  in  seven  different  languages  by 
as  many  speakers,  including  Honorable  E.  J,  Morris, 
the  American  minister. 

The  transfer  of  the  College  to  the  new  and  com- 
modious building  was  made  in  May,  1871,  but  the 
formal  opening  did  not  take  place  until  July  4  of  the 
same  year.  Honorable  William  H.  Seward,  ex- 
Secretary  of  State,  then  on  his  journey  around  the 
world,  was  present  and  delivered  a  brilliant  address. 
Thus  the  noble  institution,  which  will  stand  for  genera- 
tions as  a  monument  to  the  heroic  services  and  sacri- 
fices of  Dr.  Cyrus  Hamlin,  was  opened  "  with  great 
eclat." 

8.  Missionary  Spirit  of  the  College.  —  Dr.  Hamlin 
was  as  devoted  to  the  missionary  and  evangelistic  work 
of  the  College  as  he  had  been  during  all  the  years  in 
which  he  had  charge  of  Bebek  Seminary.  Many  of 
the  leading  pastors  and  laymen  of  all  the  churches  con- 
nected with  the  American  Board  were  either  brought  to 
Christ  by  the  teaching  and  preaching  of  Dr.  Hamlin, 
or  else  their  spiritual  lives  were  largely  molded  under 
his   influence 

9.  Tribute  to  Dr.  Hamlin.  —  In  1873,  as  Dr.  Hamlin 
was  about  to  return  to  America  on  College  business, 
the  English  and  American  colony,  including  the  mis- 
sionaries, presented  to  him  a  "  beautiful  gold  watch, 
and  a  silver  tea-set,  upon  a  fine  silver-plated  tray."  In 
the  address,  which  was  read  by  Rev.  Dr.  Thomson, 
agent  of  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  we  find 
these  words :  "  Those  years  will  ever  be  associated  in 
our  minds  with  the  events  of  the  Crimean  War,  and  we 


1I48  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

recall  with  gratitude  the  important  services  you  ren- 
dered to  the  British  army  by  erecting  a  washing  estab- 
lishment for  the  hospitals,  and  also  by  supplying  them 
with  wholesome  bread,  while  with  the  profits  you 
created  a  fund  which  has  largely  aided  the  erection  of 
churches  for  the  native  Protestant  congregations  of  this 
country.  Equally  conspicuous  were  your  exertions 
during  the  terrible  visitation  of  cholera  in  the  capital 
in  1865.  In  connection  with  the  noble  institution  over 
which  you  now  preside,  we  admired  the  prudence  and 
perseverance  with  which  you  surmounted  the  opposi- 
tion which  so  long  resisted  its  establishment.  Now 
that  you  have  been  privileged  to  erect  for  it  so  befitting 
a  habitation,  may  you  be  spared  for  many  years  to 
watch  over  its  interests." 

Endowment  for  Robert  College.  —  i.  Returns 
to  America.  —  It  was  the  earnest  wish  of  Mr.  Robert 
that  Dr.  Hamlin  should  return  to  America  and  under- 
take the  work  of  raising  at  least  $100,000  for  endow- 
ment. Dr.  Hamlin  never  undertook  any  task  with  more 
reluctance,  and  to  the  closing  day  of  his  life  he  was 
sorry  that  he  permitted  the  New  York  merchant,  whose 
name  the  College  bears,  to  induce  him  to  leave  Constan- 
tinople, where  he  felt  that  he  was  greatly  needed,  and 
take  up  a  work  for  which  he  had  no  taste  or  special  fit- 
ness. The  times  were  most  unfavorable.  Chicago  had 
just  been  burned,  and  the  war  with  Servia  had  become 
imminent.  Then,  too,  men  of  means  were  not  anxious 
to  give  money  toward  a  college  which  was  to  stand  for 
all  time  as  a  monument  to  a  rich  man,  who  was  abund- 
antly able  to  provide  all  the  necessary  funds.  With 
all  these  burdens  upon  him,  and  worn  by  the  unceasing 
efforts  of  many  years  in  Turkey,  Dr.  Hamlin  was 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  I49' 

obliged  to  undergo  a  critical  operation.  He  was  under 
the  care  of  Dr.  Bigelow  for  eighty-five  days.  Mrs. 
Baker  and  other  kind  friends  provided  for  the  hos- 
pital expenses,  and  also  for  a  much  needed  trip  to 
Florida,  where  he  soon  regained  his  strength. 

2.  His  Constantinople  Work  Closes  Abruptly.  — 
After  having  secured  $56,000  toward  the  endowment, 
notwithstanding  all  the  difficulties  in  the  way,  and 
finding  that  men  of  wealth,  in  view  of  the  war,  thought 
the  empire  would  go  to  pieces,  Dr.  Hamlin  resolved 
to  tell  Mr.  Robert  that  he  had  decided  to  give  up  the 
effort  and  return  at  once  to  Constantinople.  After 
making  this  statement  there  was  a  short  but  painful 
silence;  then  the  merchant,  whose  name  at  the  sug- 
gestion of  Dr.  Hamlin  had  been  given  to  the  College, 
said,  "  Dr.  Hamlin,  it  has  been  thought  best  that  you 
should  not  return  to  Constantinople."  Does  the  reader 
ask  why  this  noble  missionary  hero,  who  had  given 
nearly  forty  years  of  faithful  service  to  the  missionary 
work  in  Turkey,  half  of  the  time  to  the  founding  of 
Robert  College,  should  be  dismissed  in  this  almost 
brutal  way  without  any  reason  being  given?  The 
writer  asked  Dr.  Hamlin  this  same  question  a  few 
weeks  before  he  went  to  his  reward,  and  his  answer 
was  characteristic  of  the  man,  "  I  have  been  trying  for 
twenty-five  years  to  find  out  but  do  not  expect  to  know 
until  I  meet  Mr.  Robert  in  the  New  Jerusalem." 

God  Providing  for  His  Servant.  —  i.  Literary 
Work.  —  Dr.  Hamlin  was  now  reaching  old  age,  and 
during  these  forty  years  in  Turkey  he  had  saved  no 
money  for  himself,  although  he  had  given  to  the  mis- 
sionary work  $30,000  from  his  own  earnings.  Mr. 
Robert  had  promised  him  $15,000  to  provide  for  his 


150  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

old  age,  but  he  died  suddenly  soon  after  this  interview, 
and  the  name  of  the  devoted  missionary  was  not  found 
in  his  will.  While  waiting  before  God  to  learn  what 
further  work,  if  any,  there  was  for  him  to  do,  he  was 
offered  $500  to  write  the  volume,  "  Among  the  Turks." 
This  provided  for  his  family  for  a  few  months. 

2.  Educational  Labors.  —  While  he  was  reading 
the  proof-sheets  of  his  book,  an  unexpected  call  came 
for  him  to  fill  for  a  time,  the  chair  of  Theology  in 
Bangor  Theological  Seminary,  where  he  was  grad- 
uated forty  years  before.  These  were  quiet,  restful 
years  without  any  incident  which  needs  to  be  noted  in 
this  sketch. 

As  Dr.  Hamlin's  term  of  service  was  drawing  to  a 
close  at  Bangor,  an  unexpected  call  came  to  the  presi- 
dency of  Middlehury  College,  with  a  salary  of  $2,000 
and  furnished  house ;  thus  God  cared  for  his  own.  The 
splendid  services  which  Dr.  Hamlin  rendered  during 
these  five  busy  years  at  Middlebury  were  cordially 
acknowledged  when  upon  reaching  his  seventy-fifth 
birthday  he  felt  that  the  time  had  come  for  him  to  turn 
over  these  cares  to  a  younger  man.  In  receiving  with 
great  reluctance  his  resignation  the  Board  of  Trustees, 
among  other  things,  say :  "  He  has  organized  the 
Department  of  Natural  History,  Chemistry  and  Gen- 
eral Physics ;  reconstructed,  catalogued,  enlarged,  and 
rendered  more  practically  useful  the  library;  and  pro- 
vided the  students  with  a  reading-room,  gymnasium, 
and  commodious  club-house,  where  good  fare  may  be 
had  at  minimum  cost  by  all  who  desire  to  practice 
economy.  We  assure  Dr.  Hamlin  of  our  affection  and 
esteem,  and  our  hope  that  for  many  peaceful  years  he 
may  enjoy  his  well-earned  rest." 


CYRUS    HAMLIN  I5I 

Closing  Years.  —  i.  Although  Dr.  HamHn  had 
reached  an  age  when  most  men  are  either  too  feeble 
for  service  or  are  not  in  demand,  his  physical  and 
mental  vigor  were  still  remarkable  for  one  of  his  years. 
It  occurred  to  him  to  offer  his  services  to  the  American 
Board  as  a  field  agent.  It  was  most  fortunate  that 
the  Board  which  sent  him  to  Turkey  nearly  fifty  years 
before,  and  for  which  he  had  always  had  a  warm  affec- 
tion, should  have  the  benefit  of  his  council  and  the 
churches  should  hear  from  his  own  lips  the  story  of 
the  triumphs  of  the  gospel  in  the  land  of  the  Sultan. 
He  continued  to  speak  for  the  Board  as  often  as  his 
strength  would  permit  to  the  close  of  his  life.  He  was 
for  several  years  the  missionary  editor  of  Dr.  Joseph 
Cook's  magazine,  Our  Day.  He  was  made  a  corporate 
member  of  the  Board,  and  was  always  present  at  its 
annual  meetings.  His  farewell  address  at  the  Board 
meeting  in  Providence,  a  few  months  before  his  death, 
will  never  be  forgotten  by  those  present.  The  entire 
audience  arose  and  remained  standing  in  deep  silence 
while  "  The  Grand  Old  Man  "  spoke  of  his  firm  con- 
fidence in  the  triumph  of  Christ's  kingdom. 

2.  Quiet  and  Peaceful  Death.  —  While  attending 
the  one  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  Payson  Church 
in  Portland,  with  which  he  united  when  a  boy,  he  fell 
peacefully  asleep  in  the  home  of  a  relative.  Thus 
ended  serenely  in  the  city  of  his  early  struggles  and 
triumphs,  at  the  age  of  eighty-nine,  honored  and 
beloved  by  all  who  knew  him,  Cyrus  Hamlin,  the 
founder  of  Robert  College. 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA 


'53 


^^s^^^^  /«, 


Reproduced  from  "Life  and  Letters  of  Joseph  Hardy  Neesima' 
By  permission  of  Houghton^  Mifflin  &  Co. 


JOSEPH  HARDY  NEESIMA,  LL.D. 

A  Christian  Maker  of  the  New  Japan 

I 843- I 890 

BY    REV.    JEROME    D.    DAVIS,    D.D. 

Early  Life  and  Surroundings.  —  i.  Parentage 
and  Birth.  —  Mr.  Neesima's  father  was  one  of  the 
retainers  of  a  daimio  of  the  Province  of  Kozuke,  the 
castle-town  of  which  was  Annaka,  seventy  miles  north- 
west of  Tokyo.  He  was  born  in  Tokyo,  February  12, 
1843,  i"  the  house  of  Itakura,  a  prince  of  the  above 
Province. 

2.  The  moral  earnestness  and  religious  fervor  of  his 
nature  early  manifested  themselves.  In  later  years 
he  wrote  as  follows  of  his  mother :  "  She  was  a  very 
kind-hearted  woman,  always  ready  to  assist  her  neigh- 
bors, although  she  found  so  much  to  do  in  her  own 
family.  One  day  she  was  sick  in  bed.  I  was  very 
anxious  for  her  and  wished  to  procure  some  remedy, 
though  she  had  something  from  the  doctor.  So  I  went 
to  the  temple  and  prayed  to  the  god  that  he  would 
cure  my  mother.  I  bought  a  little  bit  of  cake,  which 
was  a  portion  of  the  morning  offering,  and  gave  it 
to  her  for  a  remedy,  hoping  earnestly  that  it  might 
do  some  good  to  her.  I  knew  not,  indeed,  whether 
nature  cured  her,  or  whether  her  will  or  faith  in  the 

^55 


156  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

god  made  her  whole ;  but  she  became  better  soon  after 
she  received  the  cake.  I  had  done  the  same  thing  for 
my  neighbors  and  was  often  successful  in  curing  them." 
Again,  he  writes :  "  I  was  obedient  to  my  parents, 
and,  as  they  early  taught  me  to  do,  I  served  gods 
made  by  hand  with  great  reverence.  I  strictly  observed 
the  days  of  my  ancestors  and  departed  friends,  and  we 
went  to  the  graveyards  to  worship  their  spirits.  I  often 
rose  up  early  in  the  morning,  went  to  a  temple  which 
was  at  least  three  and  a  half  miles  from  home,  where 
I  worshipped  the  gods,  and  returned  promptly,  reach- 
ing home  before  breakfast." 

Two  Awakenings.  —  i.  The  First  Awakening. — 
The  coming  of  Commodore  Perry  into  the  Bay  of 
Yedo  when  Neesima  was  ten  years  old,  greatly  stirred 
the  young  boy's  heart.  He  wished  to  become  a  brave 
soldier  and  fight  for  his  country,  and  he  often  went  to 
the  temple  of  the  god  of  war  and  prayed  that  he  would 
give  him  strength  for  valiant  service.  One  day,  how- 
ever, he  found  a  famous  motto,  penned  by  a  Chinese 
hero  whose  life  he  was  reading:  "A  sword  is  only 
designed  to  kill  a  single  man,  but  I  am  going  to  learn 
to  kill  ten  thousand  enemies  " ;  that  is,  he  was  going 
to  gain  a  great  victory  by  strategy.  This  helped  Mr, 
Neesima  to  leave  off  his  sword  exercise  and  give 
himself  to  study.  He  writes,  "  I  studied  very  dili- 
gently, and  often  went  to  bed  after  cock  crow."  He 
took  up  the  study  of  the  Dutch  language,  and  he 
was  sometimes  flogged  by  order  of  the  prince  because 
he  ran  away  from  the  office  to  study  with  his  Dutch 
teacher. 

2.  The  Second  Awakening.  —  When  Neesima  was 
fifteen  years  old  he  borrowed  several  Chinese  books 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  157 

from  a  friend.  The  opening  sentence  of  one  of  them 
was,  "  In  the  beginning  God  created  the  heaven  and 
the  earth."  He  had  often  asked  his  parents  and  his 
teachers  concerning  these  things,  but  they  had  not 
given  him  any  satisfactory  answer.  He  writes  con- 
cerning this  revelation :  "  I  put  down  the  book  and 
look  around  me  saying,  Who  made  me?  my  parents? 
No,  my  God.  God  made  my  parents  and  let  them 
make  me.  Who  made  my  table?  a  carpenter?  No, 
my  God.  God  let  trees  grow  upon  the  earth.  Al- 
though a  carpenter  made  up  this  table,  it  indeed  came 
from  trees ;  then  I  must  be  thankful  to  God,  I  must 
believe  Him,  and  I  must  be  upright  against  Him." 
He  at  once  recognized  his  Maker's  claim  to  love  and 
obedience  and  began  to  yield  them.  He  prayed :  "  Oh, 
if  you  have  eyes,  look  upon  me ;  if  you  have  ears, 
listen  for  me."  From  this  time  his  "mind  was  ful- 
filled to  read  English  Bible,"  and  he  "  burned  to  find 
some  teacher  or  missionary "  who  could  teach  him. 
But  he  waited  for  six  years  in  darkness,  only  pray- 
ing every  day  to  this  unknown  God. 

The  Resolve  and  Its  Execution.  —  i.  The  Re- 
solve. —  In  the  spring  of  1864,  when  twenty-one  years 
old,  after  receiving  a  refusal  and  a  flogging  for  ask- 
ing to  go  to  Hakodate,  Mr.  Neesima  finally  gained 
permission  from  a  noble  higher  in  authority  than  his 
own  prince  to  go  in  a  sailing  vessel  to  the  distant 
port.  He  told  his  mother  that  he  might  be  gone  a  year, 
little  thinking  that  it  would  be  ten  years  before  he 
would  again  look  in  the  faces  of  those  whom  he  loved. 
During  his  three  months  stay  in  Hakodate,  Mr.  Nee- 
sima was  the  teacher  of  the  Russian  Priest  (now 
Bishop),   Nikolai,   and  he   formed  the   great   resolve 


158  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

to  leave  Japan  and  go  to  America  where  he  could  learn 
about  the  true  God  and  the  civilization  which  his  own 
country  needed. 

2.  The  Escape.  —  He  made  a  confidant  of  a  young 
Japanese  in  a  foreign  store  and  secured  permission 
to  go  on  board  the  brig  Berlin,  then  about  to  sail  for 
Shanghai.  It  was  an  offense  punishable  with  death 
to  leave  Japan  at  this  time,  but  his  friend  rowed  him 
out  to  the  brig  in  the  midnight  darkness,  and  he 
was  so  effectually  hidden  by  the  captain  that  the  of- 
ficers who  searched  the  ship  the  next  morning,  did  not 
find  him.  Arrived  at  Shanghai,  he  engaged  to  work 
his  passage  around  to  Boston  on  the  Wild  Rover. 
God  had  so  ordered  it,  that  the  ship  on  which  he  went 
was  owned  by  that  merchant  prince  of  Boston,  the 
Honorable  Alpheus  Hardy,  who  had  for  his  aim  in 
life,  to  "  make  money  for  God."  Hence,  when  the 
long  year's  voyage  was  over,  Mr.  Hardy  took  this 
earnest  exile  into  his  heart  and  home  and  for  ten 
years  gave  him  the  best  education  that  New  England 
afforded. 

The  Student  and  Interpreter.  —  i.  The  Student. 
— After  some  years  of  preparation  in  Phillips  Acad- 
emy, Andover,  where  he  publicly  accepted  Christ  as  his 
Savior  and  united  with  the  church,  Mr.  Neesima 
entered  Amherst  College  from  which  he  was  graduated 
in  1870.  The  statement  of  President  Seelye,  when 
asked  for  testimonials  for  Mr.  Neesima  as  he  was 
about  to  return  to  Japan,  is  a  sufficient  comment  on 
his  faithfulness  in  college.  Said  the  President,  "  You 
cannot  gild  gold."  His  faithfulness  and  thorovighness 
as  a  student  are  shown  by  the  fact  that  he  had  in  his 
possession  a  pile  of  large  note-books  more  than  a  foot 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  159 

high,  containing  lectures  or  notes  which  he  copied  or 
wrote  out  while  in  college  and  theological  seminary. 
He  entered  Andover  Theological  Seminary  in  the  fall 
of  1870  and  gave  himself  to  study  there  with  the  same 
devotion  which  he  had  manifested  in  his  earlier  courses. 

2.  With  the  lujakura  Embassy.  —  In  the  winter  of 
1871-2  the  second  Japanese  Embassy,  consisting  of 
Messrs.  Iwakura,  Okubo,  Kido,  Ito,  Terashima  and 
Tanaka,  crossed  the  Pacific  and  came  to  Washington. 
They  asked  Mr.  Neesima  to  come  thither  to  them. 
He  did  so,  meeting  them  in  the  Western  fashion  in- 
stead of  prostrating  himself  before  them.  The  result 
was  that  he  spent  a  year  with  the  Embassy,  visiting 
all  the  capitals  of  Europe  and  devoting  all  his  energies 
to  help  them  gain  the  information  which  they  desired. 
His  "  stableness  "  and  firm  Christian  principle  shone 
out  during  this  visit  to  Europe.  In  most  continental 
countries  the  railroad  trains  ran  on  the  Sabbath  as  on 
any  other  day,  and  the  Embassy  often  travelled  on 
that  day.  Mr.  Neesima,  however,  never  journeyed  on 
the  Sabbath.  He  always  stopped  off  Saturday  night 
alone  and  followed  on  after  them  on  Monday.  By  his 
faithfulness  and  conscientious  adherence  to  principle, 
he  gained  the  confidence  of  these  men,  a  confidence 
which  lasted  till  the  day  of  his  death.  When  he  came 
back  to  Japan  and  wished  to  start  his  school,  these 
men  were  at  the  head  of  the  Government,  and  to  his 
intimacy  with  them  and  their  firm  confidence  in  him, 
the  Doshisha  school  owes  its  existence. 

First  Fruits  of  His  Great  Purpose.  —  Our  hero 
was  graduated  from  the  Theological  Seminary  in  June, 
1874,  and  he  was  soon  after  appointed  a  correspond- 
ing member  of  the  Japan  Mission  of  the  American 


l6o  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

Board,  Mr.  Hardy  assuming  his  support.  He  was 
asked  to  speak  on  the  closing  day  of  the  Annual  Meet- 
ing of  the  American  Board,  at  Rutland,  Vermont,  in 
October,  1874.  He  wrote  as  follows  of  his  attempt  at 
preparation  the  night  before  and  of  his  speech  the 
next  day.  "  I  found  my  heart  throbbing  and  was  ut- 
terly unable  to  make  a  careful  preparation.  I  was  then 
like  that  poor  Jacob,  wrestling  with  God  in  my  prayers. 
On  the  following  day,  when  I  appeared  on  the  stage, 
I  could  hardly  remember  my  prepared  piece  —  a  poor 
untried  speaker ;  but  after  a  minute  or  two,  I  recovered 
myself,  and  my  trembling  knees  became  firm  and 
strong.  A  new  thought  flashed  into  my  mind,  and  I 
spoke  something  quite  different  from  my  prepared 
speech.  My  whole  speech  must  have  lasted  less  than 
fifteen  minutes.  While  I  was  speaking,  I  was  moved 
with  the  most  intense  feeling  over  my  fellow-country- 
men, and  I  shed  much  tears  instead  of  speaking  in 
their  behalf.  But  before  I  closed  my  poor  speech 
about  $5,000  were  subscribed  on  the  spot  to  found  a 
Christian  College  in  Japan." 

Return  to  Japan.  —  Mr.  Neesima  reached  Japan 
in  December,   1874.     Great  changes  had  taken  place 
during  his  ten  years'  absence.     The  Mikado  was  re- 
instated ;  his  capital  was  changed  from  Kyoto  —  where 
his  ancestors  had  ruled  for  more  than  a  thousand  years 
—  to  Tokyo ;  the  daimios  had  relinquished  their  feudal 
rights,  and  the  pensions  of  their  retainers  were  capital- 
ized ;   the   Julian,   or   Gregorian,   calendar   had   been  ^^ 
adopted,  and  the  Sabbath  was  made  a  holiday;  the     ^ 
post-office,   with   a   money-order  system,   a   savings-        "^ 
ized ;    the  Julian,   or   Gregorian,   calendar   had   been  / 
established;  newspapers  were  being  printed  and  cir- 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  l6l 

Ciliated ;  an  army  and  navy  on  a  foreign  plan  were 
formed ;  a  mint  was  established ;  the  coast  was  being 
surrounded  with  lighthouses ;  the  first  railroads  were 
opened ;  a  network  of  telegraphs  was  unifying  the  old 
feudal  kingdom ;  and  a  general  system  of  education, 
which  Mr.  Neesima  had  helped  to  prepare,  was  being 
put  in  operation  all  over  Japan.  Most  of  these  changes 
had  taken  place  one  or  two  years  before  Mr.  Neesima's 
return.  The  great  question  of  constitutional  liberty 
was  being  agitated,  and  the  men  whose  confidence  and 
love  Mr.  Neesima  had  gained  in  his  intercourse  with 
the  Embassy,  three  years  before,  were  at  the  head  of 
the  Government.  Mr.  Neesima  was  offered  again  and 
again  places  of  high  position  under  these  men  and  was 
urged  to  accept  them,  but  he  steadily  declined.  He 
allowed  nothing  to  turn  him  from  the  great  purpose 
of  his  life,  to  establish  a  Christian  college  in  his  native 
land. 

Founding  of  Doshisha.  —  After  a  few  weeks  spent 
with  his  aged  parents,  who  were  living  at  Annaka  in 
their  native  Province  and  where  he  boldly  preached 
the  gospel,  Mr.  Neesima  came  to  Kobe  and  Osaka, 
where  the  Mission  of  the  American  Board  had  opened 
their  first  two  stations,  and  where  the  preceding  spring 
the  first  two  churches  were  organized.  He  tried  for 
several  months  to  get  permission  to  open  his  Christian 
school  in  Osaka,  but  while  the  Governor  would  have 
been  glad  to  have  a  school  opened  in  the  city,  he  said 
that  no  missionary  would  be  allowed  to  teach  in  it. 
Kyoto  had  been  closed  to  foreigners  for  250  years,  and 
for  more  than  a  thousand  years  it  had  been  the  center 
of  Buddhism  and  Shintoism  in  Japan.  It  was  the  most 
bigoted  city  in  the  Empire.     God  had,  however,  pre- 


l62  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

pared  the  way  for  a  Christian  school  to  be  opened  in 
that  city.  Kyoto  had  been  opened  to  foreigners  for 
loo  days  on  the  three  previous  years  for  an  Exposition, 
and  Rev.  O.  H.  GuHck,  Dr.  M.  L.  Gordon  and  other 
missionaries  had  met  the  Wind  Yamamoto,  the  coun- 
selor of  the  Governor  of  the  Kyoto  Fu  and  had  given 
him  Christian  books,  so  that  he  was  much  interested 
in  Christianity.  Through  his  influence  the  Governor 
gave  his  consent  to  Mr.  Neesima  to  open  his  school 
in  Kyoto.  Mr.  Tanaka,  Mr.  Neesima's  special  friend 
while  with  the  Embassy  in  America  and  Europe,  was 
then  at  the  head  of  the  Department  of  Education,  and 
he  finally  gave  a  reluctant  consent  to  the  opening  of 
the  school  in  Kyoto,  although  he  feared  trouble.  Per- 
mission was  also  at  last  gained  for  Rev.  J.  D.  Davis  to 
teach  in  the  school  and  for  his  family  to  reside  in  Kyoto 
for  one  year.  Mr.  Neesima  and  the  blind  Yamamoto 
formed  the  first  Japanese  company  under  whom  the 
school  was  opened  with  eight  students  in  a  rented 
building,  November  29,  1875.  The  name  "  Doshisha," 
"  One  Endeavor  Company,"  was  chosen  for  the  school. 
Marriage,  Trials  and  Victory.  —  i.  Marriage.  — 
Soon  after  Mr.  Neesima  came  to  Kyoto,  he  became 
acquainted  with  Yamamoto  Yaye,  a  sister  of  the  blind 
counselor  of  the  Kyoto  Fu ;  and  meeting  her  repeatedly 
at  her  brother's  house,  acquaintance  ripened  into  af- 
fection, and  in  the  autumn  of  that  year  they  were 
engaged.  On  Sabbath,  January  2,  1876,  the  Lord's 
Supper  and  also  the  ordinance  of  baptism  were  cele- 
brated for  the  first  time  in  the  city  at  the  regular 
service  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Davis.  Yamamoto  O  Yaye 
received  baptism  at  that  time,  and  the  next  day,  Janu- 
ary 3,  in  the  presence  of  all  the  members  of  the  school, 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  163 

of  the  ex-daimio  of  Tango  and  his  daughter,  with 
other  friends,  including  Mr.  Yamamoto's  family,  Mr. 
Neesima  and  O  Yaye  were  united  in  marriage,  the  first 
Christian  marriage  in  the  city. 

2.  Trials.  —  As  before  stated  the  school  was  opened, 
but  the  ten  thousand  Buddhist  and  Shinto  priests  in  the 
city  banded  together  to  oppose  and  crush  it.  The 
Governor  turned  against  it,  and  for  six  years  this  op- 
position continued.  Mr.  Neesima  wrote  to  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Hardy :  "  We  are  hated  by  the  magistrates  and 
priests,  but  we  have  planted  the  standard  of  truth  here, 
and  will  never  more  retreat.  To  no  one  else  but  you 
will  I  say  that  this  Christian  school  could  have  no 
existence  here  if  God  had  not  brought  this  poor  run- 
away boy  to  your  kind  hands.  The  only  way  to  get 
along  in  this  country  is  to  work  courageously,  even 
under  many  difficulties."  The  coming  of  the  Kuma- 
moto  Band  of  over  thirty,  graduates  and  undergradu- 
ates of  Captain  Janes'  English  school,  at  the  beginning 
of  the  second  Doshisha  school  year  was  a  great  en- 
couragement and  help  to  the  school.  But  the  whole 
situation  during  the  first  six  years  was  a  great  strain 
on  Mr. Neesima  and  seriously  affected  his  health  which 
was  never  rugged.  It  seemed  again  and  again  as  if  the 
enterprise  must  fail,  and  he  often  felt  that  he  had  only 
God  on  whom  to  lean.  He  once  exclaimed,  "  Oh, 
that  I  could  be  crucified  once  for  Christ  and  be  done 
with  it !  "  He  held  on  and  held  in  and  held  out,  how- 
ever, for  six  years,  when  there  appeared  outward  as- 
surances of  that  victory  of  which  the  founder  of  the 
school  had  been  sure  in  his  own  heart  from  the  begin- 
ning. 

3.  Victory.  —  A   Governor    friendly   to   the    school 


164  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

came  to  Kyoto,  and  the  first  graduates,  members  of  the 
Kumamoto  Band,  were  beginning  such  important  work 
in  various  places  as  called  attention  to  the  Doshisha 
and  evoked  praise  in  its  behalf. 

Broadening  Plans.  —  i.  The  University  Idea. — 
In  the  year  1883  Mr.  Neesima  began  to  think  and  plan 
actively  to  enlist  interest  among  Japanese  friends  in  the 
establishment  of  a  university,  or  in  the  broadening  out 
of  the  Doshisha  into  a  Christian  university.  Up  to  this 
time  the  institution  had  only  been  known  in  Japan  as 
a  Christian  school,  and  the  general  idea  among  the 
leading  men  in  the  Empire  was  that  it  was  a  school 
simply  for  training  Christian  preachers  and  evangelists. 
This  was  the  very  natural  conclusion  from  the  fact  that 
most  of  the  graduates  up  to  this  time  had  engaged  in 
active  Christian  work.  For  this  reason  it  was  a  very 
difficult  matter  to  appeal  to  the  Japanese  public  for 
help  for  the  school ;  but  Mr.  Neesima  never  swerved 
from  his  great  purpose  of  a  Christian  school,  nor  from 
stating  that  publicly  in  his  appeals. 

2.  Neesima' s  Appeal.  —  It  was  important  to  show 
the  public  that  something  beside  the  Bible  and  theology 
was  taught  in  the  school,  and  that  its  aim  was  a  broader 
one  than  simply  the  training  of  evangelists ;  but  it  was 
always  made  very  clear  that  the  foundation  of  the 
school  was  Christian,  and  that  Christianity  was  the 
foundation  of  the  morality  taught  in  it.  This  was 
clearly  stated  in  every  appeal  which  was  made  by  voice 
or  pen.  In  the  first  printed  appeal  which  was  put  forth 
in  the  Japanese  language  in  1884,  occurs  the  following 
eloquent  and  forcible  paragraph :  "  Some  are  trying 
to  improve  the  morality  of  the  people ;  but  they  demand 
that  the  old  morality  of  China  shall  be  used  with  the 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  165 

people,  and  hence  we  cannot  rejoice  at  their  efforts, 
for  the  Chinese  moraHty  has  not  influence  upon  the 
mind  of  men  generally.  All  Oriental  states  are  almost 
destitute  of  liberty  and  Christian  morality ;  they  cannot, 
therefore,  rapidly  advance  in  civilization.  The  growth 
of  liberty,  the  development  of  science,  the  advance- 
ment of  politics  and  the  power  of  morality  have  brought 
forth  the  European  civilization.  These  four  important 
effects  have  come  from  the  study  of  the  advancing 
sciences  upon  the  foundation  of  Christian  morality. 
We  cannot  believe,  then,  that  without  morality  and 
science,  civilization  can  come  in  Japan.  To  put  the 
foundation  of  our  state  upon  this  foundation  is  just 
like  putting  the  foundation  of  a  building  upon  a  rock. 
No  sword  can  conquer  it ;  no  tempest  can  break  it ;  no 
waves  can  overcome  it.  If  it  is  founded  upon  the  old 
Chinese  morality,  it  will  be  just  like  putting  it  upon 
a  sandy  beach  of  the  sea;  when  the  rough  waves  beat 
against  it  it  falls  into  ruin.  We  are  therefore  hoping 
for  a  university  which  is  founded  upon  pure  morality, 
and  which  teaches  modern  advanced  science," 

Second  Visit  to  America.  —  In  the  early  part  of 
1884  it  became  evident  that  the  strain  of  the  last  nine 
years  had  so  exhausted  Mr.  Neesima  that  he  must  have 
a  complete  change.  He  had  tried  in  vain  to  rest  in 
Japan ;  he  could  not  escape  from  the  many  calls  which 
pressed  upon  him  everywhere;  he  could  not  forget  the 
great  work  he  had  undertaken ;  it  was  always  before 
his  eyes  and  on  his  heart.  He  at  last  yielded  to  the 
earnest  solicitations  of  his  friends  and  accepted  Mr. 
Hardy's  generous  invitation  to  go  to  the  United  States 
by  way  of  Europe,  and  on  the  sixth  of  April,  1884, 
he  started  from  Kobe  on  his  long  journey.    He  was  a 


1 66  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

close  Student  of  all  schools  and  educational  methods 
in  every  place  to  which  he  went.  In  Switzerland  while 
climbing  the  St.  Gothard  Pass,  he  was  overcome  with 
weakness  or  partial  failure  of  the  heart  and  thought 
that  the  end  had  come.  He  there  wrote  in  what  he 
supposed  would  probably  be  his  last  words  the  follow- 
ing :  "  My  plan  for  Japan  will  be  defeated ;  but  thanks 
be  to  the  Lord  that  He  has  already  done  so  much  foi* 
us!  I  trust  He  will  yet  do  a  wonderful  work  there. 
May  the  Lord  raise  up  many  true  Christians  and  noble 
patriots  for  my  dear  fatherland.  Amen  and  amen." 
Mr.  Neesima  rallied  again,  reached  the  United  States 
in  the  early  autumn  and  remained  there  in  great  weak- 
ness for  a  year.  His  soul  was  on  fire  all  the  time, 
however,  for  Doshisha  and  for  the  evangelistic  work  in 
Japan.  He  was  writing  to  the  teachers  and  students 
and  making  plans  and  appeals  for  the  university. 

The  Last  Heroic  Struggle  and  Last  Victory.  — 
I.  Work  in  Kyoto.  —  In  the  autumn  of  1885  Mr.  Nee- 
sima returned  to  Japan  somewhat  improved  in  health 
but  still  suffering  from  weakness  and  headache.  He 
at  once  began  to  work  quietly  for  the  establishment  of 
the  university.  He  made  many  earnest  friends  for  the 
enterprise,  and  many  sums  of  money  were  promised 
toward  its  endowment.  This  quiet  work  and  the  issue 
and  circulation  of  small  circulars  in  regard  to  the 
university  continued  during  two  or  three  years,  but  it 
was  not  until  1888  that  a  public  and  determined  effort 
was  made  for  its  endowment.  About  650  of  the  of- 
ficials, scholars  and  leading  business  men  of  Kyoto 
assembled  in  one  of  the  large  temples  of  the  city  and 
were  addressed  by  Mr.  Neesima  and  others,  and  much 
interest  was  aroused. 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  1 6/ 

2.  The  Fund  Increases.  —  In  the  summer  of  that 
year  Mr.  Neesima  went  to  Tokyo  and  worked  in  the 
interest  of  the  university.  But  so  great  was  his  weak- 
ness that  one  evening,  as  he  met  a  few  influential 
friends  to  present  his  plan,  he  fainted  quite  away.  In 
July  of  that  year,  however,  Count  Inouye  gave  a  dinner 
to  men  of  rank  and  wealth,  inviting  Mr.  Neesima  to 
be  present,  and  after  dinner  he  introduced  the  subject 
and  asked  Mr.  Neesima  to  speak  of  the  university, 
and  the  result  was  that  Count  Inouye  subscribed  i,ooo 
yen,  Count  Okuma  i,ooo  yen,  Viscount  Aoki,  then 
Vice-minister  of  State,  500  yen,  a  prominent  banker 
6,000  yen  and  others  enough  to  bring  the  amount  up 
to  31,000  yen.  This  gave  great  enthusiasm  to  the 
movement.  Early  in  August,  1888,  after  the  money 
mentioned  above  had  been  secured  for  the  university, 
Mr.  Neesima  became  so  weak  that  some  physicians  in 
Tokyo  told  him  that  he  had  only  a  short  time  to  live; 
one  other  physician  told  him  that  if  he  took  a  complete 
rest  for  two  years  he  might  possibly  live  several  years ; 
but  he  decided  to  do  what  he  could  while  life  lasted. 
He  prepared  an  appeal  for  the  university  in  the  autumn 
of  1888,  which  was  published  simultaneously  in  twenty 
of  the  leading  papers  of  Japan.  He  spent  the  most  of 
the  next  winter  in  Kobe  in  great  weakness,  but  with  the 
spring  of  1889  he  seemed  to  regain  his  strength  in  some 
measure.  He  spent  a  part  of  the  next  summer  at  a  sea- 
side resort,  and  while  there  the  news  came  to  him  that 
his  alma  mater,  Amherst  College,  had  conferred  upon 
him  the  degree  of  LL.D,  He  was  greatly  troubled 
because  they  had  given  him  this  degree,  and  he  wrote 
to  a  friend  that  he  had  always  refused  any  position 
which  had  been  offered  him  in  his  own  country,  that 


l68  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

he  felt  he  was  not  worthy  of  it,  and  he  ended  by  ask- 
ing :  "  What  shall  I  do  with  it  ?  " 

3.  The  Doshisha  had  been  groiving  all  these  years ; 
the  Girl's  School  had  increased  its  buildings  and  more 
than  doubled  its  numbers ;  the  Hospital  and  Training 
School  for  Nurses  had  been  established ;  a  preparatory 
department  for  young  men  had  been  added ;  the  first 
two  dormitories  had  increased  to  thirteen ;  a  large 
recitation  hall,  a  chapel  to  seat  600,  and  a  large  library 
building  had  been  erected,  the  three  latter  of  brick  and 
stone.  The  Honorable  J.  Harris,  of  New  London, 
Conn.,  had  become  interested  in  the  work  of  the  Dos- 
hisha, mainly  through  Dr.  Learned's  letters,  and  he 
gave  at  first  $15,000  for  a  Hall  of  Science,  and  during 
1889  his  interest  increased  so  that  he  made  his  gift 
$100,000  to  endow  the  Science  Department.  Mr.  Nee- 
sima  saw  the  foundations  of  the  new  Hall  of  Science 
laid  before  he  went  to  Tokyo  in  October,  1889.  The 
students  had  also  increased,  so  that  during  the  school 
year  of  1888-89  there  were  in  all  departments  over 
900  young  men  and  women.  There  were  also  twelve 
foreign  and  thirteen  Japanese  teachers  connected  with 
the  school. 

4.  Latest  Actiz'ities.  —  The  autumn  of  1889  found 
Mr.  Neesima  far  from  well,  and  yet  he  kept  at  work 
for  the  university.  He  went  to  Tokyo  in  October  and 
saw  a  great  many  friends  in  that  vicinity,  talking  of 
the  university  endowment  and  receiving  many  promises 
of  aid.  He  contracted  a  severe  cold  in  November, 
which  confined  him  to  his  bed  for  a  week  and  left  him 
so  feeble  that  he  went  in  December  to  Oiso,  a  quiet 
place  on  the  sea-shore  near  Yokohama,  for  rest.  The 
new  year  came,  and  Dr.  Neesima  sent  out  many  New 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  {69 

Year's  letters  to  his  friends,  especially  to  the  leading 
pastors  and  workers.  In  one  of  these  he  said  that 
the  greatest  need  of  the  Church  in  Japan  for  the  new 
year  was  a  new  baptism,  so  that  we  might  be  prepared 
to  take  Japan  for  Christ.  He  sent  an  acting  pastor  in 
Niigata  a  letter  nearly  three  yards  long,  urging  upon 
him  the  desirability  of  planting  workers  in  the  im- 
portant centers  of  that  Province;  he  sent  another  long 
letter  to  a  man  in  the  west  end  of  the  Empire,  urging 
the  planting  of  the  gospel  in  that  region. 

5.  His  Passing.  —  On  January  eleventh  he  began  to 
decline,  and  he  grew  worse  from  day  to  day,  so  that 
on  the  seventeenth,  one  of  the  best  physicians  in  Tokyo 
was  summoned  to  see  him.  He  pronounced  his  disease 
peritonitis  and  said  that  he  was  in  a  very  dangerous 
condition.  Mrs.  Neesima  reached  him  on  the  evening 
of  the  twentieth.  He  grew  steadily  worse  but  was 
conscious  up  to  the  last.  He  dictated  his  last  words 
about  the  school  and  the  missionary  society,  marking 
on  a  map  the  strategic  points  which  should  be  oc- 
cupied. He  also  dictated  his  last  wishes  in  reference 
to  the  Doshisha,  his  last  words  to  Secretary  Clark, 
of  the  American  Board,  and  the  following  message 
to  Mrs.  Hardy :  "  I  am  going  away.  A  thousand  thanks 
for  your  love  and  kindness  to  me  during  the  many 
years  of  the  past.  I  cannot  write  myself.  I  leave  this 
world  with  a  heart  full  of  gratitude  for  all  you  have 
done  for  my  happiness."  This  message  was  but  an 
epitome  of  the  love  and  gratitude  which  he  had  poured 
out  in  his  letters  during  twenty  years  to  his  benefactors, 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hardy.  A  few  hours  before  his  death 
he  asked  that  the  third  chapter  of  Ephesians  be  read 
to  him,  friends  prayed  with  and  for  him  and  at  twenty 


170  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

minutes  past  two  o'clock,  January  23,  1890,  with  the 
words,  "  Peace,  joy,  heaven,"  on  his  lips,  he  entered 
into  rest. 

6.  At  Rest.  —  The  body  was  brought  to  Kyoto, 
and  more  than  3,000  people  assembled  at  the  funeral, 
and  the  long  procession  marched  to  the  foot  of  the 
mountain  east  of  the  city  and  wound  up  its  side,  the 
students  of  the  school  acting  as  bearers ;  and  there, 
in  accordance  with  his  direction,  a  simple  rough  stone 
with  the  words,  "  Joseph  Hardy  Neesima,"  marks  the 
spot  where  his  ashes  repose. 

The  Inner  Life  and  Its  Results.  —  It  is  not 
easy  to  find  the  inner  springs  and  fountains  of  such 
a  life  and  character  as  those  of  Dr.  Neesima.  Here 
was  one  among  the  millions  of  young  men  in  Japan 
in  that  twilight  period  when  only  dim  rays  of  the 
civilization  and  Christianity,  which  are  now  flooding 
the  land,  were  visible ;  one  young  man,  who  seems 
almost  to  have  lifted  himself  out  of  the  depths  of 
darkness  in  which  he  was  born  and  to  have  climbed 
to  a  height  of  honor  and  influence  such  as  few  men 
reach.     What  is  the  explanation? 

I.  Loyalty  to  Truth.  —  This  is  shown  by  Dr.  Nee- 
sima's  earnest  search  for  truth.  He  began  this  quest 
very  early.  He  asked  his  parents  and  teachers  again 
and  again  how  the  world  and  all  things  came  into  being 
as  they  are.  When  the  first  verse  of  Genesis,  "  In  the 
beginning  God  created  the  heaven  and  the  earth," 
shone  as  a  ray  of  light  in  the  darkness,  he  kept  his  face 
toward  that  ray.  He  studied  it,  he  pondered  it  and  fol- 
lowed it  for  six  years.  He  tried  to  trace  it  to  its 
source,  and  since  the  man  who  wrote  the  Chinese  book 
which  contained   it   was   an   American,   he   reasoned 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  I7I 

that  if  he  could  go  to  America  he  could  learn  more  con- 
cerning this  God  who  created  the  heaven  and  the  earth. 
He  was  ready  to  leave  his  home  and  friends  and  native 
land  and  risk  his  life  in  doing  it.  He  set  out,  a  pen- 
niless wanderer,  not  even  daring  to  let  his  friends  or 
his  parents  know  that  he  had  gone  lest  they  might  be 
put  to  death.  He  trusted  himself  to  men  of  a  strange 
speech,  from  an  unknown  land,  as  for  a  year  he 
worked  his  toilsome  way  westward  in  quest  of  truth. 

But  it  was  not  only  that  he  made  a  loyal  search 
for  truth  ;  he  obeyed  the  truth  when  he  found  it.  There 
is  truth  which  appeals  only  to  the  intellect  and  carries 
with  it  no  impulse  of  duty ;  for  example,  mathematical 
truth.  Moral  truth,  however,  carries  with  it  a  con- 
viction of  something  which  ought  to  be  done. 
Happy  is  the  man  who  obeys  the  truth.  As  soon 
as  Dr.  Neesima  found  the  Creator,  he  bowed  before 
Him  in  worship  and  began  to  ask  Him  to  guide  him 
into  farther  truth  and  light,  and  God  heard  his  prayers. 
His  was  an  example  of  the  truth  of  Christ's  promise, 
"  He  that  willeth  to  do  his  will  shall  know  of  the  doc- 
trine." So,  also,  when  he  found  the  great  truth  of  a 
Savior,  he  was  ready  to  commit  himself  to  Christ  and 
obey  Him.  He  was  ever  loyal  to  duty  and  principle. 
He  would  leave  the  embassy  when  traveling  with  them 
in  Europe  and  stop  over  alone  and  rest  on  the  Sab- 
bath ;  and  when  he  came  back  to  Japan,  he  stopped  off 
from  the  overland  train  at  Green  River  station  in 
Wyoming  and  spent  a  lonely  Sabbath  with  the  Chinese 
section-hands  there. 

2.  A  Great  Aim  and  a  Definite  Purpose.  —  His  was 
not  a  low  aim ;  it  was  not  a  selfish  one.  It  was  in 
harmony  with  God's  great  aim.     It  was  the  establish- 


172  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS   IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

ment  of  a  great  Christian  university  for  the  sake  of 
lifting  up  through  that,  so  far  as  he  could,  his  whole 
nation  toward  God  and  a  Christian  civilization.  It 
was  to  be  a  Christian  school;  Christianity  was  its 
foundation.  He  began  to  put  forth  his  appeals  for  the 
university  when  there  was  still  a  great  deal  of  prejudice 
against  Christianity,  but  it  was  always  made  clear 
that  Christian  morality  was  the  foundation  on  which 
all  enduring  civilization  must  rest.  "  Christianity  is 
the  foundation  of  the  moral  education  promoted  by 
this  company,"  was  one  of  the  unchangeable  articles 
of  the  Constitution  of  the  Doshisha  company. 

An  extract  from  the  first  appeal  which  Dr.  Neesima 
issued  for  the  university  has  already  been  given.  In 
1888  he  issued  another  appeal  which  was  published 
simultaneously  in  twenty  of  the  leading  newspapers 
in  Japan.  In  this  document,  after  giving  a  brief  ac- 
count of  the  founding  of  the  Doshisha,  he  continues : 
"  Thus  the  Doshisha  was  established ;  and  its  purpose 
was,  not  merely  to  give  instruction  in  English  and 
other  branches  of  learning,  but  to  impart  higher  moral 
and  spiritual  principles  and  to  train  up,  not  only  men 
of  science  and  learning,  but  men  of  conscientiousness 
and  sincerity.  This  we  believe  can  never  be  attained 
by  one-sided  intellectual  education  nor  by  Confucian- 
ism, which  has  lost  its  power  to  control  and  regulate 
the  mind,  but  only  by  a  thorough  education,  founded 
on  the  Christian  principles  of  faith  in  God,  love  of 
truth  and  benevolence  to  one's  fellow  men.  That  our 
work  is  founded  on  these  principles  is  the  point  in 
which  we  have  differed  from  the  prevailing  views  on 
education,  and  owing  to  this  we  failed  to  gain  the 
sympathy  of  the  public  for  a  number  of  years.     At 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  1 73 

that  time  our  condition  was  very  weak,  with  almost  no 
friends  in  the  whole  country,  with  our  principles  of 
education  not  only  despised  by  the  ignorant,  but 
treated  with  contempt  even  by  men  of  enlightenment. 
Nevertheless,  being  convinced  of  the  ultimate  victory 
of  truth,  helping  and  strengthening  each  other,  we 
proceeded  on  our  way  with  a  single  eye  to  the  end, 
and  with  strong  determination,  amid  the  greatest  dif- 
ficulties. .  .  .  To  express  our  hopes  in  brief,  we  seek 
to  send  out  into  the  world,  not  only  men  versed  in 
literature  and  science,  but  young  men  of  strong  and 
noble  character  by  which  they  can  use  their  learning 
for  the  good  of  their  fellow  men.  This  we  are  con- 
vinced, can  never  be  accomplished  by  abstract  specu- 
lative teaching,  nor  by  strict  and  complicated  rules,  but 
only  by  Christian  principles,  —  the  living  and  power- 
ful principles  of  Christianity,  —  and  we  therefore  adopt 
these  principles  as  the  unchangeable  foundation  of  our 
educational  work  and  devote  our  energies  to  their  re- 
alization." 

Dr.  Neesima  allowed  nothing  to  turn  him  aside  from 
his  great  purpose.  He  began  his  school  in  the  most 
humble  way,  in  the  midst  of  great  prejudice  and  oppo- 
sition ;  but  he  held  steadily  to  his  purpose  until  suc- 
cess came.  No  matter  how  dark  the  outlook,  no  mat- 
ter how  great  the  opposition,  no  matter  how  tempting 
were  the  offers  in  other  lines  of  work,  he  kept  steadily 
on.  "  This  one  thing  I  do,"  was  his  motto.  In  his 
note-book,  written  in  Italy  when  on  his  way  to  America 
the  second  time  in  1884,  we  read :  "  Be  single  minded 
for  a  single  purpose.  We  shall  sooner  or  later  reach 
our  mark," 

3.  Intense  Devotion  to  His  Purpose.  —  He  had  a 


174  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

holy,  absorbing  ambition  to  reach  his  great  aim.  He 
counted  not  his  hfe  dear  to  him  if  he  could  accomplish 
his  great  object.  A  year  or  two  before  he  died,  when 
the  question  was  raised  of  his  going  to  the  United 
States  a  third  time  to  try  and  secure  money  for  the 
endowment  of  the  university  and  his  physicians  told 
him  that  it  would  be  almost  certain  death  for  him  to 
go,  he  replied  that  that  would  make  no  difference  with 
him,  if  he  felt  that  by  going  he  could  secure  the  money. 
His  going  to  Tokyo  and  working  during  the  last 
months  of  his  life  were  done  in  a  similar  spirit.  He 
died  in  the  harness.  He  believed  in  a  divine  fire  and 
zeal.  Speaking  of  this  in  his  note-book,  he  says : 
"  This  fire  can  only  be  got  by  daily  seeking.  Those 
who  depend  very  much  upon  their  talent  and  knowl- 
edge are  very  apt  to  forget  to  seek  this  much  needed 
divine  fire  for  themselves,  as  well  as  for  their  hearers. 
How  cold  such  a  heart  must  be  to  a  congregation !  If 
each  professing  Christian  has  this  divine  fire,  Christ's 
Kingdom  will  come  much  faster.  O  Heavenly  Father, 
give  us  this  fire !  However  small  we  may  be,  if  we 
have  genuine  fire  we  shall  consume  even  the  whole 
world.  How  small  a  spark  of  fire  burned  up  a  vast 
forest  in  Canada !  How  small  a  lamp-light  consumed 
two-thirds  of  the  great  city  of  Chicago !  "  He  was 
so  absorbed  in  gaining  his  great  object  that  he  would 
forget  himself  and  give  up  his  own  plans,  if  he  felt 
that  this  would  unite  all  and  secure  the  end  in  view. 
He  could  yield  everything  but  vital  and  fundamental 
principles,  but  those  he  would  never  yield. 

4.  Unwavering  Faith  in  God  and  His  Union  zvith 
Christ.  —  He  felt  with  Paul,  "  I  can  do  all  things 
through    Christ   who    strengtheneth   me."      He   com- 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  I75 

mitted  himself  and  his  great  plan  to  God,  with  a  firm 
faith  that  God  would  give  him  success.  He  never 
wavered  in  the  darkest  days.  In  the  last  English 
letter,  which  he  wrote  a  few  weeks  before  his  death, 
this  shines  out.  He  speaks  of  his  "  day-dream  to  found 
a  Christian  college  "  and  how  he  received  no  human 
encouragement ;  but  he  adds,  "  However,  I  was  not 
discouraged  at  all ;  I  kept  it  within  myself  and  prayed 
over  it."  Then  he  speaks  of  the  night  before  he  made 
his  Rutland  appeal  for  money  for  the  school,  and  how 
he  could  not  sleep,  and  says,  "  I  was  then  like  that 
poor  Jacob,  wrestling  with  God  in  my  prayers."  And 
he  writes  in  the  same  letter :  "  I  have  a  full  hope  that 
my  vague  day-dream  for  a  Christian  university  will 
sooner  or  later  be  realized,  and  in  some  future  we  shall 
find  occasion  to  give  thanks  to  Him  who  has  led  us 
and  blessed  us  beyond  our  expectation." 

Eleven  days  before  he  died,  he  wrote  a  New  Year's 
poem  of  which  the  following  is  a  free  translation : 

"  Seeing  the  old  year  go, 
Do  not  lament  over  the  sick  body ; 
For  the  cock's  crow  is  the  harbinger 
Of  happy  times  at  hand. 

"  Although  inferior  in  ability, 
Poor  in  plans  for  the  good  of  my  generation, 
Yet,  still  cherishing  the  greatest  hope, 
I  welcome  the  spring." 

5.  His  Desire  for  Japan's  Salvation.  —  The  most  ab- 
sorbing object  in  Neesima's  life  was  his  desire  to  bring 
the  millions  of  Japan  to  Christ.  This  was  fundamental 
to  his  whole  plan  for  a  Christian  college  and  univer- 


176  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

sity.  "  For  Christ  and  the  Church  "  would  express 
his  thought  for  the  school.  He  had  no  faith  in  any 
education  or  civilization  which  had  not  Christianity 
as  its  foundation  and  as  its  moving  and  controlling 
power.  When  a  member  of  the  mission  visited  him 
for  an  hour  in  Ikao,  where  he  rested  in  great  weakness 
during  the  summer  of  1888,  he  was  no  sooner  seated 
than  Dr.  Necsima  said,  "  I  have  something  I  want  to 
show  you  " ;  and  he  went  into  an  adjoining  room  and 
brought  out  a  map  of  his  ancestral  province,  on  which 
he  had  marked  every  town  where  there  was  a  church, 
every  place  where  the  gospel  was  regularly  preached 
and  other  places  for  which  he  was  praying  and  planning 
to  secure  evangelists.  In  his  round-the-world-diary, 
in  1884,  we  read :  "  April  7,  Monday.  Prayer  for 
theological  students."  "  April  8.  Came  to  Nagasaki 
6.30  A.M.  Pray  for  fifth  year  " ;  and  so  on,  day  after 
day,  we  read,  "  Pray  for  theological  class,"  "  Pray 
for  vernacular  class."  He  carried  around  the  world 
with  him  this  intense  desire  for  workers  to  be  raised 
up  to  reap  the  waiting  fields  of  Japan  and  presented 
this  object  in  earnest  prayer  to  God  every  day. 

His  first  work  when  he  reached  his  native  land  in 
December,  1874,  after  ten  years'  absence,  was  to  preach 
the  gospel  in  his  ancestral  Province,  and  he  did  it  so 
earnestly  that  it  brought  forth  an  abundant  harvest. 
When  he  came  to  Kyoto  in  1875,  he  immediately 
started  a  religious  service  in  his  house  on  the  Sabbath, 
where  he  preached  Christ  to  a  company  of  men  and 
women.  He  was  always  and  everywhere  known  as  an 
earnest  Christian.  The  impression  of  him  among  his 
countrymen  was  well  voiced  by  a  high  official  who 
remarked,  when  Dr.  Neesima  had  persisted  in  holding 


JOSEPH    HAEIDY    NEESIMA  177 

firmly  to  his  Christian  principles,  "  Well,  you  are  a 
slave  of  Jesus  Christ,  are  you  not !  " 

Dr.  Neesima  spent  the  summer  months  of  1885, 
while  in  the  United  States  and  far  from  well,  at  West 
Goldsborough,  Me.,  a  retired  country  place.  On  July 
28  he  wrote  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hardy  as  follows :  "  I 
went  to  church  here  last  Sabbath.  After  service,  I 
asked  for  the  Sunday-school.  To  my  surprise  the 
reply  was  negative.  I  thought  it  too  strange  and  too 
bad  that  these  young  folks  should  grow  up  here  with- 
out it.  A  thought  came  to  me  at  once,  Why  cannot 
we  start  a  Sunday-school  here?  I  proposed  to  a  lady 
that  we  should  offer  ourselves  as  teachers.  I  thought 
I  would  not  show  forth  myself  as  the  originator  of  the 
idea  and  tried  to  put  the  preacher  forward  to  execute 
it.  He  was  most  glad  to  do  so.  I  took  the  respons- 
ibility of  getting  the  Sabbath-school  papers  for  them, 
because  I  had  no  least  doubt  you  will  take  share  in 
the  work  and  get  others  interested  in  it."  Professor 
Hardy  says  in  his  "  Life  and  Letters  " :  "  In  his  sub- 
sequent letters  from  Japan,  when  burdened  with  many 
cars  and  feeling  the  hand  of  death  not  far  from  him, 
Mr.  Neesima  asks  again  and  again,  *  How  is  my 
Sunday-school  getting  along  ?  '  " 

What  are  the  Results? — i.  Dr.  Neesima  was 
an  object  lesson  to  the  nation.  Gaining  the  love  and 
confidence  of  the  Iwakura  Embassy  as  he  did,  the 
men  who  were  at  the  head  of  the  nation  during  his 
active  life  in  Japan,  he  was  a  marked  man.  Their 
eyes  were  upon  him.  The  great  company  of  mourning 
friends  who  assembled  from  all  parts  of  the  Empire 
at  his  funeral  and  the  hundreds  of  sympathetic  tele- 
grams which  came  from  leading  men  show  how  wide 


178  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

was  the  influence  of  this  great  commoner.  Viscount 
Aoki,  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  at  the  time,  sent  a 
letter,  saying,  "  I  have  lost  a  great  and  good  friend." 
Count  Inouye  telegraphed  to  those  at  his  sick-bed, 
"  You  must  keep  him  alive."  He  still  lives ;  though 
dead,  he  still  speaks  to  the  whole  nation. 

The  great  educator.  Air.  Fiikncazva,  in  The  Con- 
temporary Reviciv,  prepared  an  editorial  soon  after 
Dr.  Neesima's  death,  of  which  the  following  is  an 
extract :  "  Mr.  Neesima,  living  in  a  corrupt  age,  was 
not  corrupted  by  it.  Working  earnestly  in  the  cause 
of  education  and  religion,  his  purpose  was  ever  single. 
He  was  indeed  an  example  of  independence.  His  body 
perished,  but  his  name  is  beyond  the  reach  of  oblivion. 
Many  of  the  coming  generations  will  hear  of  him  to 
take  heart  and  follow  him."  A  month  after  Dr. 
Neesima's  death,  a  large  commemorative  meeting  was 
held  in  Tokyo.  Mr.  Kato,  President  of  the  Imperial 
University,  made  an  address  on  that  occasion  of  which 
the  following  extracts  are  given :  "  From  what  I  have 
heard  of  Mr.  Neesima,  I  know  very  well  what  kind  of 
a  man  he  was  —  one  greatly  to  be  honored  and  re- 
spected. All  who  have  spoken  of  him  unite  in  ascrib- 
ing to  him  an  invincible  purpose.  It  is  this  uncon- 
querable spirit  of  his  which  I  honor.  I  do  not  praise 
him  because  he  was  a  Christian.  I  care  not  whether 
he  believed  in  Jesus  or  not.  I  praise  him  for  that 
steadfast  spirit  so  essential  in  every  sphere  of  religion, 
learning,  politics,  or  trade.  I  believe  this  spirit  a  great 
necessity  in  this  country,  although  it  is,  of  course, 
everywhere  important.  .  .  .  While  there  are  un- 
doubted exceptions,  yet  I  think  this  is  our  weakness, 
that   we   have   not   the   endurance,   the   indefatigable 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  I79 

Spirit,  of  the  men  of  the  West.  In  the  case  of  Mr. 
Neesima,  however,  from  the  very  first,  when  he  de- 
cided to  go  to  America,  to  the  close  of  his  Hfe,  this 
invincible  spirit  was  conspicuous.  Such  success  as  he 
atained  cannot  be  brought  by  mere  cleverness.  .  .  . 
I  do  not  say  that  we  are  altogether  destitute  of  this 
element  of  strength,  for  if  this  were  so,  the  future 
would  be  hopeless.  But  I  do  say  that  for  the  young, 
Mr.  Neesima  is  in  this  respect  a  great  example.  Not 
only  those  who  follow  him  in  his  religious  faith,  but 
all  —  merchants,  statesmen,  scholars  —  should  strive  to 
acquire  his  spirit." 

Mr.  Takegoshi,  editor  of  The  Christian,  said  at  this 
same  meeting :  ''  If  a  hero  is  one  who  can  command 
an  army,  who  rides  among  flying  bullets  and  glittering 
swords,  then  Mr.  Neesima  was  not  one.  If  a  hero  is 
one  whose  eloquence  like  a  mighty  wind  sweeps  away 
all  opposition,  or  whose  fluent  speech  and  practical 
tact  insure  success  in  every  undertaking,  he  was  not 
one.  But  if  he  is  the  true  hero  whose  life  is  a  poem, 
a  lesson  which  can  be  sung  and  which  is  capable  of 
stirring  the  enthusiasms  of  future  generations,  then 
Mr.  Neesima  may  well  be  given  that  title.  Does  any 
one  charge  me  with  extravagant  praise?  I  can  only 
say  what  I  believe.  Often  the  fame  of  great  men  is 
larger  than  the  reality.  The  shadow  is  greater  than 
the  body  itself,  so  that  on  drawing  near  the  reality 
disappoints  us.  For  this  reason  great  men  are  often 
compared  to  a  picture  which  must  be  observed  at  a 
certain  distance.  But  this  is  not  the  case  with  Mr. 
Neesima.  Great  as  was  his  fame,  when  we  approach 
nearer  to  see  and  speak  with  him,  he  wins  a  larger 
respect.     Those  who  knew  him  personally  testify  to 


l8o  EFFECTIVE   WORKERS    IN    NEEDY   FIELDS 

his  gentleness  and  meekness.  But  there  burned  within 
him  a  fire  of  mighty  power.  It  is  a  very  rare  thing 
to  see  these  two  traits  in  a  single  individual.  A  merely 
good  man  is  often  weak-minded,  while  ability  fre- 
quently leads  to  rashness  and  imprudence.  Gentleness 
and  force  co-existed  in  Mr.  Neesima  in  a  rare  degree. 
In  one  of  his  letters  to  me  he  wrote :  '  Young  man, 
fighting  once,  do  not  stop  there.  Fighting  the  second 
time,  do  not  stop  there.  Do  not  stop  even  after  fight- 
ing the  third  time.  Your  sword  shattered,  your  arrows 
all  spent,  yet  do  not  stop  fighting  till  every  bone  is 
broken  and  every  drop  of  blood  is  shed  for  the  truth. 
Yes,  if  we  do  not  fight  for  the  truth,  is  not  our  life  a 
useless  one?  '  These  words  rouse  me  to  action.  When 
I  read  them,  I  sit  upright.  Within  his  spirit  raged  like 
the  billowy  sea,  but  it  flowed  out  calm  and  peaceful  in 
meek  and  gentle  conduct.  So  a  mighty  river  foaming 
with  a  power  to  move  mountains  while  in  its  bed,  when 
it  reaches  the  sea  spreads  tranquilly  over  the  vast  sur- 
face without  a  ripple.  The  secret  of  this  combination 
of  gentleness  and  strength  was  his  confidence  in 
Heaven.    He  entrusted  all  to  God." 

Dr.  Neesima  especially  impressed  the  young  men 
of  Japan.  Not  only  those  who  came  under  his  influence 
in  the  Doshisha,  but  all  who  knew  him  and  all  who 
read  his  life  are  impressed.  His  life  is  published  in  the 
Chinese  language  also  and  is  impressing  thousands  of 
young  men  in  China. 

2.  The  First-fruits  of  the  School.  —  At  the  end  of 
the  seventeenth  school  year,  it  could  be  said  that  less 
than  ten  of  the  178  men  who  had  been  graduated  from 
the  collegiate  department  of  the  school  were  not  pro- 
fessing Christians  when  they  left  it.     Of  those  men. 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  l8l 

thirty-six  were  preaching  or  studying  theology,  fifty- 
eight  were  teachers  and  forty-five  were  still  pursuing 
their  studies.  At  that  time  no  had  been  graduated 
in  theology.  During  the  first  twenty-five  years  of 
the  Doshisha's  life  4,611  students  entered  the  school. 
Of  these  936  had  been  graduated.  Of  those  graduates 
147  were  engaged  in  teaching,  ninety-five  were  preach- 
ing the  gospel,  seventy-eight,  graduates  of  the  Train- 
ing School  for  nurses,  were  engaged  in  their  calling; 
over  200  were  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits,  in  banks 
and  on  newspapers ;  102  graduates  of  the  Girls'  School 
were  in  homes  of  their  own,  most  of  them  centers  of 
Christian  influence.  Besides  these,  about  3,400  had 
left  the  school  before  graduation,  and  very  many  of 
them  are  engaged  in  useful  Christian  work  as  preach- 
ers, teachers,  etc.  No  one  can  measure  the  influence 
for  good  which  has  come  to  this  nation  of  45,000,000 
people,  just  waking  to  new  life,  from  this  Christian 
output  of  the  Doshisha.  It  has  changed  and  is  chang- 
ing the  history  of  the  nation. 

3.  Present  Condition  and  Prospects.  —  Dr.  Neesi- 
ma's  death  was  a  great  loss  to  the  school.  Its  discipline 
and  its  earnest  Christian  spirit  declined ;  its  numbers 
diminished ;  it  was  powerfully  affected  by  the  waves 
of  nationalism  and  rationalism  which  swept  over 
Japan;  it  was  separated  from  the  Mission  and  the 
American  Board.  Finally,  in  February,  1898,  came 
the  Coup  de  grace  when  the  fundamental  principles  of 
the  Constitution  were  changed,  and  it  seemed  for  a  time 
as  if  Dr.  Neesima's  great  purpose  was  to  fail.  It 
cost  a  long  and  painful  struggle  to  restore  the  school, 
but  it  was  accomplished.  The  Constitution  was  re- 
stored and  incorporated  under  the  provisions  of  the 


l82  EFFECTIVE    WORKERS    IN    NEEDY    FIELDS 

'New  Civil  Code.  It  was  declared  that  "  the  Christi- 
anity which  forms  the  basis  of  the  moral  teaching  in 
all  departments  of  the  Doshisha,  under  the  unchange- 
able principles  of  its  Constitution,  is  that  body  of  living 
and  fundamental  Christian  principles  believed  and  ac- 
cepted in  common  by  the  great  Christian  churches  of 
the  world."  An  earnest  body  of  Christian  directors 
have  charge  of  the  institution.  The  most  earnest  and 
united  body  of  Christian  Japanese  teachers  which  the 
school  has  had  since  Dr.  Neesima's  death  are  working 
in  the  school,  and  the  Honorable  Kenkichi  Kataoka, 
for  many  years  Chairman  of  the  Lower  House  of 
Parliament  and  a  most  earnest  Christian  man,  for 
twenty  years  an  elder  in  the  Presbyterian  Church,  has 
just  signified  his  willingness  to  accept  the  position  of 
President  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  and  the  hope  is 
entertained  that  he  will  in  the  near  future  retire  from 
political  life  and  devote  his  whole  time  to  the  institu- 
tion. The  students  are  increasing,  and  the  Christian 
life  and  spirit  of  the  school  are  greatly  improved.  It 
seems  as  if  the  great  purpose  of  the  earnest  soul  who 
gave  his  life  for  the  Doshisha  is  to  be  realized. 

4.  Finally,  we  see  what  God  can  do  with  one  man 
who  puts  himself  in  God's  hands  to  use  him  as  He  will. 
Here  was  a  boy  in  the  midst  of  a  worse  than  Egyptian 
darkness.  God  sent  one  ray  of  light  down  to  him,  and 
he  opened  his  heart  to  receive  that  ray.  He  walked  and 
lived  in  its  light  for  six  years,  trying  to  find  out  and 
follow  it  to  its  source,  until  the  God  of  that  ray  led 
him  around  the  world  and  flooded  his  soul  with  light. 
He  opened  his  heart  more  and  more  to  the  incoming 
and  the  indwelling  of  the  Divine  One  and  put  himself 
into  the  hands  and  under  the  guidance  of  this  abiding 
Guest. 


JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA  183 

God  raised  him  up  and  led  him  and  used  him  as 
really  as  He  did  Moses  of  old  to  save  his  people.  He 
made  an  impression  on  the  whole  nation.  He  founded 
a  school  which  has  already  changed  the  history  of 
Japan.  But  the  results  already  seen  are  only  the  first- 
fruits  of  the  work,  its  mission  is  not  ended;  it  has 
only  just  begun.  That  mission  is  not  simply  to  raise 
up  educated  men  and  women  of  noble  Christian  char- 
acter to  bless  the  world.  It  will  be  a  pattern  and  a 
stimulus  to  the  government  schools  of  the  true  system 
and  the  true  foundation  of  education.  The  stone 
which  marks  the  last  resting  place  of  the  founder  of 
Doshisha  may  sometime  crumble  into  dust,  like  the 
monuments  erected  to  the  memory  of  the  heroes  of 
Thermopylae,  but  the  influence  of  that  life  which  was 
given  to  the  school  will  live  on  as  an  inspiration  as 
long  as  Japan  shall  live,  yea,  through  the  eternal 
years  of  God. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY    AND 
ANALYTICAL   INDEX 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

The  literature  indicated  below  is  recommended  for  auxiliary 
reading.  It  is  very  desirable  that  every  class  should  secure 
some  of  the  material  suggested ;  otherwise  its  members  will 
gain  too  little  additional  information  to  make  the  class  sessions 
very  profitable.  The  most  helpful  literature  in  this  list  is  pre- 
ceded by  an  asterisk  (*),  while  two  asterisks  (**)  indicate 
the  preferable  one  of  two  very  superior  sources  of  information 

DAVID   LIVINGSTONE 

**Blaikie,  W.  G.  —  The  Personal  Life  of  David  Livingstone. 
1888. 

Ellis,  J.  J.  —  David  Livingstone.    1892. 
*Hughes,  T.  —  David  Livingstone,  in  English  Men  of  Action 
Series.     1889. 

Johnston,  H.  H.  —  Livingstone  and  the  Exploration  of  Cen- 
tral Africa.     1891. 

Lee,  S.,  editor.  —  Dictionary  of  National  Biography,  vol. 
XXXIII,  article  David  Livingstone.  Excellent  ii-page 
sketch  by  R.  H.  Vetch. 

Livingstone,  D.  —  Missionary  Travels  and  Researches  in 
South  Africa.    Second  edition.    1875. 

Livingstone,  D.  —  Narrative  of  an  Expedition  to  the  Zam- 
besi and  its  Tributaries,  and  of  the  Discovery  of  the 
Lakes  Shirwa  and  Nyassa,  1858-1864.     1865. 

Marrat,  J.  —  David  Livingstone,  Missionary  and  Discoverer. 
1877. 

Montefiore,  A.  —  David  Livingstone.     1890. 

Mossman,  S.  —  Livingstone,  the  Missionary  Traveler.    1882. 

Roberts,  J,  S.  —  Life  and  Explorations  of  David  Living- 
stone.   1884. 

Stanley,  H.  M.  —  How  I  Found  Livingstone,  pp.  408-515, 
558-627.     1874. 

187 


[05  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

*Waller,  H.  —  The  Last  Journals  of  David  Livingstone  in 
Central  Africa,  from  1865  to  His  Death,  Continued  by 
a  Narrative  of  His  Last  Moments  and  Sufferings. 
1875. 

GEORGE   LESLIE    MACKAY 

Bliss,    E.    M.,    editor.  —  Encyclopaedia    of    Missions,    article 

Formosa.     1891. 
Campbell,  W.  —  Missionary  Success  in  Formosa.     1889. 
General  encyclopaedias,  article  Formosa. 
Johnston,  J.  —  China  and  Formosa,  chs.  IX,  XVI,  XVII. 
*Mackay,  G.  L.  —  From  Far  Formosa.     1895. 
Missionary  Review  of  the  World :  1894,  pp.  421  ff.,  491  ff. ; 

1896,  pp.  81-87. 
Pierson,  A.  T.  —  Miracles  of  Missions,  Second  Series,  pp. 

17-42.     1895. 
Students  and  the  Missionary  Problem,  pp.  383-394.     1900. 

ISABELLA    THOBURN 

Ecumenical  Missionary  Conference,  New  York,  1900,  vol.  1, 

p.  47;  vol.  II,  pp.  72,  73,  132,  133,  135-140. 
Northwestern  Christian  Advocate,  September  11,  1901. 
*Thoburn,  J.  M.  —  India  and  Malaysia,  chs.  XXVI-XXVIII, 
written  by  Miss  Thoburn.    1892. 

CYRUS   HAMLIN 

Hamlin,  C.  —  Among  the  Turks.    1877. 
Hamlin,  C.  —  Arena,  July,  1899,  pp.  25-38,  article  American 
Education  in  the  Ottoman  Empire. 
*Hamlin,  C.  —  My  Life  and  Times.    1893. 
Missionary  Review  of  the  World:   1896,  pp.  431-435;  1901, 
pp.  31-39. 

JOSEPH    HARDY   NEESIMA 

Davis,  J.  D.  —  A  Maker  of  New  Japan,  Rev.  Joseph  Hardy 
Neesima,  LL.D.    1894. 
*Hardy,  A.  S.  —  Life  and  Letters  of  Joseph  Hardy  Neesima. 
1891. 


ANALYTICAL   INDEX 


Besides  Indicating  the  location  of  important  topics,  this 
Index  is  also  intended  for  use  in  preparing  the  various  studies. 
Having  read  over  its  analytical  outline  before  taking  up  each 
study,  the  student  sees  exactly  what  ground  is  covered  by  the 
section  to  be  mastered.  So,  too,  after  having  studied  this  sec- 
tion, its  outline  can  again  be  used  in  lieu  of  questions  put  by 
the  leader,  thus  enabling  the  student  to  see  what  topics  have 
been  forgotten.  The  numerals  following  each  topic  and  sub- 
topic  refer  to  the  pages  where  they  may  be  found. 

DAVID    LIVINGSTONE,    1813-1873 

I.    Ancestors   and   parents,    3,  4. 

1.  Livingstone's   forefathers,   3,  4. 

2.  His  parents,  4. 
II.    His  early  life,  4,  5. 

1.  His  boyhood,  4. 

2.  Work  and  study  in  the  cotton  mills,  4,  5. 

3.  His   religious  education,  5. 

III.  Contemporary  events,  5,  6. 

IV.  Influences  leading  him  to  the  mission   field,  6,   7. 
V.    Preparation  and  choice  of  field,  7,  8. 

1.  His  preparation,  7. 

2.  Influences  leading  him  to  Africa,  7,  8. 
VI.    Departure  and  arrival  in   Africa,  8-1 1. 

1.  The  departure  from  home,  8. 

2.  His  arrival  at  Cape  Town,  8,  9. 

3.  First  experiences  and  impressions,  9,  10, 

4.  His  adventure  with  the  lion,  10,  11. 
VII.    Marriage  and  work  at  Chonuane,  1  r. 

1.  His  first  four  years  and  marriage,  11. 

2.  The  chief,   Sechele,   11. 
VIII.    His  spirit  and  methods,  12,   13. 

1.  Dominating  desire  to  penetrate  Africa,  12. 

2.  The  missionary  and  physician,  12. 

3.  Large  plans  versus  small  ones,   12,   13. 
IX.    His  family  in  England,    13-1S. 

I.  Their  absence  a  great  trial,  13,   14. 
a.  One  of  Livingstone's  letters  to  his  wife,   14,   15. 
X.    His  work  while  alone,  15-21. 

1.  He  explores  the  interior,  15. 

2.  "  Sinking   the   missionary  in   the  explorer,"    16. 

3.  Determined  to  open  a  way  to  the  West  Coast,   16,   17. 

4.  From  Linyanti  to  St.  Paul  de  Loanda,  17-19. 

(1)  Horrors  of  the  slave-trade,  17,   18.     (2)   Devotion  to  his 
men,  18.     (3)  His  condition  at  the  end  of  the  journey, 
18,   19. 
$,  Experiences  at  St.   Paul  de  Loanda,   19,  20. 
6.  From  the  West  Coast  to  the  East,  20,  21. 

(i)    A   two   years'   journey,    20,    21.      (2)    Letter    from    Sir 
Roderick  Murchison,  21. 
XI.    His  first  visit  to  England,  21-23. 

1.  Honors  bestowed  upon  him,  21,  22. 

2.  His  Cambridge  address,  22,  23. 

189 


190 


ANALYTICAL    INDEX 


XII.    Return  to  Africa,  23,  24. 

1.  The  results  of  his  Ijome  visit,  33. 

2.  Death  of  his  wife,  23,  24. 

XIII.  Livingstone's  second  visit  to   England,  24,  25. 

1.  The  two  objects  had  in  view,  24. 

2.  The  reception  and  honors  accorded  him,  24,  2g. 

XIV.  He  again  returns  to  Africa,  25,  26. 

1.  He  disappears  for  three  years,  25. 

2.  The  year  1871,  25,  36. 


XV. 


XVI. 


Stanley  and  Livingstone,  26-28. 

1.  Stanley's  journey  inland,  26,  27. 

2.  The  story  of  his  finding  Livingstone,  2T. 

3.  Livingstone's  influence   on   Stanley,  27,  28. 


The  missionary  explorer's  final  work,  28,  29. 

1.  His  birthday  record,  28. 

2.  Letter    to    the    New   York    Herald,   2Q. 
%.  The  weary  months  following,  29. 

4.  Dies  on  his  knees,  29. 

XVII.    The  body  brought  to  England,  29,  30. 

1.  Faithfulness  of   his  African  servants,  30. 

2.  Inscription  on  his  tomb  in  Westminster  Abbey,  z'^- 

XVIII,    Tributes  and  influence,  31-33. 

1.  The  tribute  of  Sir  Bartle  Frere,  31. 

2.  Posthumous  influence,  31,  32. 

3.  His  spirit  and  method,  32,  33. 


GEORCE  LESLIK   MACKAY,    D.D.,    1844-190I 


I.    His  parentage  and  early  years,  37,  38. 
X.  Mackay's  parents^  2,t. 

2.  Birth  and  early  influences,    3y,    38. 

3.  His   personal  appearance,  38. 

II.    Mackay's  education,   38-41. 

1.  The  old  log  schoolhouse,  38,  39. 

2.  Mackay's  habits  of  study,  39,  40. 

3.  Memories  of  his  student  life,  40. 

4.  The  influence  of  Dr.  Duff,  40,  41. 

III.  Mackay's  appointment,  41,  42. 

IV.  Personal  characteristics,  42,  43. 

1.  Intensity  in  home  agitation  of  missions,  42,  43. 

2.  Mackay  s  social  qualities,  43. 

V.    Mackay  sails  for  China,  44,  43. 
VI.    His  choice  of  a  field,  45. 

VII.    Formosa,  "  the  Beautiful,"  45-48. 

1.  The  name  of  the  island,  45. 

2.  Its  physical   features,  46. 

3.  Formosan  inhabitants,  46,  47. 

4.  Products  of  the  island,  47. 

5.  The  climate,  48. 

6.  Dutch    supremacy,   48. 

VIII.    The  Dutch  occupation,  48-51. 

1.  Dutch  missions  in  Formosa,  48,  49. 

(i)    Work    of    early    missionaries,    48,    49.      (2)    A    similar 
policy  in  Ceylon,  49. 

2.  The  Dutch  expulsion,  50. 

3.  Early  missionary  heroism,  50,  51. 

4.  A  consecrated  island,   51. 


ANALYTICAL    INDEX 


191 


IX. 


X. 


XI. 


XII. 


xin. 


Mackay  begins  his  Formosan  work,  Si-SS- 

1.  Spirit  in  which  he  began  it,  51. 

2.  The  first  home,  51,  52. 

3.  Manner  of  learning  the  language,  52,  S3. 

4.  The  religions  of  China,  53,   54. 

5.  Mackay's  first  convert,  54,  55. 

Planting   Formosan  churches,   55,  56. 

1.  The  first  out-station,  55,  56. 

2.  The  church  at  Sin-Tiam,  56. 

The  taking  of   Bang-kah,   57,    58. 

1.  The   Gibraltar  of  heathenism   in   North   Formosa,   57. 

2.  After  ten  years,  57,  58. 

Mackay  training  his  students,   58-64. 

1.  A  peripatetic  school,   58,   59. 

2.  Oxford  College,   59-61.  .  ,      ,  „ 
(i)     Establishment    and    opening    of    the    college,    59,    60. 

(2)  Beauty  of  the  campus  a  part  of  education,  60,  61. 

3.  Mackay's  methods  of  teaching,  61-63.  ^   ^   rr., 
(i)  His  characteristics  as  a  teacher,  61,  62.     (2)  The  evening 

program,   62.      (3)    His  use   of  the   museum,  62,   63. 

4.  The  place  of  music  in  his  work,  63,  64. 

Mackay's  marriage,  64-66. 

1.  A   Dutch   view  of  marrying  natives,  64. 

2.  Dr.    Mackay's  argument  and  marriage,  64,  65. 

3.  The  wedding  journey,  65,  66. 

XIV.    The  Girls'  School  at  Tamsui,  66,  67. 

XV.     The   French  invasion,   67-69. 

1.  Events   in   Formosa,   67,   68. 

2.  Dr.   Mackay  in  Hongkong,  68. 

3.  A  brief  captivity,  68,  69. 

XVI.    Mackay  as  a  church  builder,  69,  70. 

1.  Three  stone  churches  erected,  69. 

2.  His  reasons  for  building  spires,  69,  70. 

XVII.    Mackay's  abundant  labors,   70-72. 

1.  His  powers  of  endurance  very  remarkable,   70. 

2.  Defense   against   criticisms,    70-72. 

(i)   His  own  defense,  70,  71-      (2)    Statement  of  a  member 
of  the  mission,  71.      (3)    A  Hoa's  testimony,  71,  73. 

XVIII.    Times  of  refreshing,  72-74. 

1.  Revival   four  days'  journey  from  Tamsui,  72. 

2.  Work  at  points  on  the  eastern  coast,  73,  74. 

XIX.    Mackay's  medical  work,   74,  75. 

1.  Preparation  for  it,   74. 

2.  Practice  in  the   hospital  and  in  homes,   74,  75. 

3.  Medical    instruction   of  his  students,   75. 

4.  Lay  dentistry,  75. 

XX.    Mackay's  spiritual  power,   7S-77- 

1.  Prevailing  prayer  illustrated,    75,   76. 

2.  Communion  of  saints,   76,   77. 

XXI.    The  Japanese  war,  77,  7^. 

1.  The   Japanese  victorious,    77,   78. 

2.  Results  upon  mission  work,  78. 

XXII.    Mackay's  martyr  spirit,  78,  79. 

XXIIL    The  end,  79.  80. 

1.  His  death,  79,  80. 

2.  Mackay's   post-mortem  influence,   80. 

XXIV.    His  colleagues  in  Formosan  work,  80,  81. 


192  ANALYTICAL    INDEX 


ISABELLA    THOBURN,     1840-190! 

I.    Her  Scotch-Irish  ancestry,  85,  86. 

1.  The  Thoburns  in  Ireland,  85. 

2.  They  emigrate  to  America,  85,  86. 

II.     Ohio   homes   and   schools,   86-89. 

1.  The  Thoburn  family,  86. 

2.  Parents  of  Miss  Thoburn,  86,  87. 

3.  Isabella's  education,   87,   88. 

4.  Her  early   teaching,   88. 

5.  Further  teaching  experiences,  88,  89. 

III.  The  call  from  India,  89-97. 

1.  Her  brother's  message,   89,  90. 

2.  Woman  in  India,  90-92. 

(i)  Woman's  condition  described  in  three  phrases,  90,  91. 
(2)  Defenses  offered,  91,  92.  (3)  A  Hindu  woman's 
prayer,  92. 

3.  Unmarried  women  missionaries,  92,  93. 

4.  Missionary  boards  and  woman  workers,  93,  94. 

5.  The  Woman's  Foreign  Missionary  Society  organized,  94,  95. 

6.  Its  first   public  meeting,  95-97. 

(i)  The  meeting  described,  95,  96.  (2)  Bishop  Moore's  en- 
dorsement of  the  Society  thus  begun,  96,  97. 

IV.  Miss  Thoburn's  early  years  in  India,  97-100. 

1.  Her  work  defined,  97,  98. 

2.  The  true   romance  of  missions,  98,  99. 

3.  Her  first  school,  99,   100. 

(i)  Location  and  attitude  toward  her  project,  99,  100. 
(2)   The  beginning  made,   100. 

V.    The  higher  education  for  women  in  India,  100-107. 

1.  Miss  Thoburn's  ideas  on  the  subject,  100-102. 

2.  Miss   Singh's   plea,   102,    103. 

3.  Lai  Bagh,  the   Ruby  Garden,   103,   104. 

4.  Boarding   schools  in  mission   lands,    104-106. 

5.  Women  evangelists,    106. 

6.  Lucknow  Woman's  College,   106,   107. 

(i)  Occasion  of  its  founding,  106,  107.  (2)  Importance  of 
this  movement,   107. 

VI.    Home  furloughs,   108,  109. 

1.  Twice  in  America,  108. 

2.  Her  interest  and  participation  in  deaconess  work,   108,  109. 

VII.    The  fatal  illness  and  death,  109-114. 

1.  The  end,   109. 

2.  Miss  Singh's  letter  describing  the  last  days,   109-114. 

3.  God's  Acre,  114. 


CYRUS    HAMLIN,    iSlI-IQOO 

I.    Introductory,  117. 

II.    Birth  and  childhood,  117-120. 

1.  Hamlin's  ancestors,  117,  118, 

2.  His  parents,   118. 

3.  Birth  and  earliest  years,    118,    119. 

4.  Hamlin's  boyhood,   119,   120. 

(1)  His  school  life,  119.  (2)  Books  read,  119.  (3)  Work 
on  the  farm,  119.  (4)  Earliest  interest  in  missions, 
119,  120. 


ANALYTICAL    INDEX  I93 

III.  Apprentice  years  in  Portland,   120,  121. 

1.  Apprenticed  to  a  silversmith,    120. 

2.  Church   life,   120,   121. 

(i)    Influence   of    Edward   Payson,    120.      (2)    Unites    with 
the   Church,    121. 

3.  A  call  to  the  ministry,  121. 

IV.  In  the  academy,    121,   122. 

1.  At  the  home  of  Mr.   Soule,  121. 

2.  Hamlin  a  great  student,   121,   122. 

V.    Bowdoin  college  life,  122-125. 

1.  Admissiop  to  the  college,   122. 

2.  Hamlin's    feeble    health,    122. 

3.  Attitude  toward  hazing,  122,   123. 

4.  Assistant  librarian  under  Longfellow,    123. 

5.  The  great  revival,   123. 

6.  Missionary  spirit  in  Bowdoin,   123,   124. 

7.  Society  life,    124. 

8.  Hamlin's  steam  engine,   124,    125. 

VI.    In   Bangor  Seminary,    125-127. 

1.  His  first  year  in  theology,    125. 

2.  Hamlin  lectures,   125. 

3.  Missionary   work  in    New   Ireland,    125,    126. 

4.  He  engages  in  public  debate,   126. 

5.  Offers  himself  to  the  American  Board,  126,  127. 

VII.    A  year's  delay,   127,   128. 

1.  Lectures  upon   foreign  missions,    127. 

2.  Supplies  the  Payson  Church,   128. 

3.  His  marriage  and  ordination,  128. 

VIII.     Commencement    of    missionary    work,    128-130. 

1.  Language  study,    ij8,   129. 

2.  Russia's  hostility,  129. 

3.  Conversion   of   Marcus  Brown,   129,   130. 

4.  Lowering  skies,    130. 

IX.     Bebek    Seminary,    130-135. 

1.  The  opening  day,   130. 

2.  Workshop  and  philosophical  apparatus,   130,  131. 

3.  Opposition    from   the   Patriarch  and   others,    131,    132. 

4.  Enlarging   Seminary,    132. 

5.  Rev.   T.  W.  Wood  becomes  his  associate,  132. 

6.  Sir   Stratford  Canning,    132,    133. 

7.  Opposition   to   the    workshop,    133,    134. 

8.  Mr.    Arthur   Stoddard   of  Glasgow,   134. 

9.  The  first   Protestant  burial,   134,   135. 

10.  Relief  for  the  persecuted   Armenians,    135. 

X.    A   new   enterprise,    135-138. 

1.  Establishes  a  mill  and  a  bakery,  135,  136. 

2.  Views   of   his   colleagues,    136. 

3.  Attitude  of  the  American  Board,   136,  137. 

4.  The  work  expanding,   137. 

5.  Hard   experiences   with   the    mill,    137,    138. 

6.  Laziness   not   tolerated,    138. 

XL    The  Crimean  War,  138-141. 

1.  A  bread  conspiracy,   138,   139. 

2.  Florence  Nightingale's  coming  and  reforms,   139. 

3.  The  army  demands  more  bread,   139,    140. 

4.  A   washing  machine  invented,    140,    141. 

5.  Dr.   Hamlin's  cholera   remedy,   141. 

6.  Building   mission   churches,   141. 

XII.     Dr.    Hamlin    visits   England  and   America,   143. 

1.  In  Englandj   142. 

2.  Brief  stay  in  America,   142. 


194  ANALYTICAL   INDEX 

XIII.  The  founding  of  Robert  College,   142-148. 

1.  Selecting  the  college  site,  143. 

2.  The  design  of  the  college,  143. 

3.  Efforts    to   secure    funds,    143,    144. 

4.  College  opens  in   Seminary  building,    144. 

5.  Securing  permission  to  build,   144,   145. 

6.  Visit  of  Admiral  Farragut,  145,  146. 

(i)  Hamlin's  interview  with  Farragut,  14S,  146.  (2)  Far- 
ragut's  appeal  secures  the  Sultan's  permission  to  build, 
146. 

7.  Building  and  formal  opening,    146,   147. 

(i)  Breaking  ground  for  the  college,  146,  147.  (2)  It'i 
formal  opening,    147. 

8.  The   missionary   spirit   of  the  college,    147. 

9.  Tribute  of   Constantinople  citizens  to   Hamlin,    147,   148. 

XIV.  Endowment  for  Robert   College,   148,   149. 

1.  Dr.   Hamlin   returns   to  America,    148,   149. 

2.  His  Constantinople  work  closes  abruptly,  149. 
XV.     God  providing  for  his  servant,   149,   150. 

1.  His  literary  work,   149,  150. 

2.  Educational  labors,    150. 

(i)    In    Bangor    Seminary,    150.      (2)    President   of  Middle- 
bury   College,    150. 
XVI.     Dr.   Hamlin's  closing  years,    151. 

1.  Offers   his  services  to  the   American   Board   as   field  agent, 

151- 

2.  His  quiet  and  peaceful  death,   151. 

JOSEPH    HARDY    NEESIMA,     1843-189O 

I.    Neesima's  early   life   and  surroundings,   155,   156. 

1.  Parentage   and  birth,    155. 

2.  His   moral  earnestness  and   religious  fervor,   155,   156. 
II.    Two  awakenings,    156,    157. 

1.  The   first   awakening,    156. 

2.  The  second  awakening,  156,  157. 

III.  The   resolve   and  its  execution,   157,   158. 

1.  His  decision,    157,    158. 

2.  Escapes  from  Japan,   158. 

IV.  The  student  and  interpreter,   158,   159. 

1.  Student  life  in  America,    158,   159. 

2.  With   the   Iwakura   Embassy,    159. 

V.    First  fruits  of  his  great  purpose,   159,  i6o. 
VI.    Return  to  Japan,   160,  161. 
VII.    The  founding  of  Doshisha,  i6r,  162. 
VIII.    Marriage,  trials  and  victory,  162-164. 

1.  Marries  Yamamoto  Yaye,   162,  163. 

2.  Trials  in  connection  with  the  new  school,  163. 

3.  The  victorious  outcome,    163,    164. 
IX.    Broadening  plans,  164,   165. 

1.  The   university  idea,   164. 

2.  Neesima's  appeal,    164,    165. 

X.    Second  visit  to  America,    165,    166. 
XI.    The  last  heroic  struggle  and   final  victory,   166-170. 

1.  Work   in   Kyoto,    166. 

2.  The  Doshisha  fund  increases,   167,    168. 

3.  The  institution's  growth,   168. 

4.  Neesima's  latest  activities,    168,    169. 

5.  His  death,    169,    170. 

6.  Funeral  and  burial-place,   170. 


ANALYTICAL    INDEX  I95 

XII.    Neesima's  inner  life  and  its  results,  170-177. 

1.  His  loyalty  to  truth,  170,   171. 

(i)  His  search  for  truth,  176,  171.  (2)  Obedient  to  the 
truth,    171. 

2.  A  great  aim  and  a  definite   purpose,    171-173. 

(i)  His  great  desire,  171,  172.  (2)  His  widespread  appeal, 
172,    173.      (3)    Unswerving   purpose,    173. 

3.  Intense  devotion   to  his  aim,   173,    174. 

4.  Unwavering   faith   in  God  and  union  with   Christ,   174,   175. 

5.  His   desire    for   Japan's   salvation,    175-177. 

(i)  This  desire  fundamental,  175,  176.  (2)  His  first  work 
after  returning  from  America,    176,  177. 

6.  His  labors  at  West   Goldsborough,   Maine,    177. 

XIII.     The    fruitage   of   his   life,    177-183. 

1.  Neesima  an  object  lesson  to  the  nation,   177-180. 

(i)  All  Japan  watching  him,  177,  178.  (2)  Estimate  of  Mr. 
Fukuzawa  and  Kato,  178,  179.  (3)  Mr.  Takegoshi's 
statement,  179,  180.  (4)  Neesima's  power  to  impress 
young  men,    180. 

2.  The  first  fruits  of  the  school,  180,  181. 

3.  Its   present  condition  and  prospects,   181,   182. 

4.  What  God  can  do  with  one  man,  182,  183. 


BOOKS  FOR  MISSION  STUDY 

World-wide  Evangelization,  the  Urgent  Business  of  the  Church.  The 
Report  of  the  Toronto  Convention  1902.  691  pp.  and  cloth  bound ; 
net  price,  postpaid,  I1.50. 

"We  have  been  profoundly  impressed  by  the  contents  of  this  volume  and 
especially  by  the  dominance  of  tlie  spiritual  tone  which  pervades  it."— The 
Missionary  Herald. 

"  These  reports  of  the  Volunteer  Conventions  have  proved  invaluable  as 
reference  volumes  to  students  and  pastors,  missionaries  and  editors."— VI/zV 
sionary  Rez'ieiv  of  the  IVorld. 

The  Call,  Qualifications  and   Preparation  of  Missionary  Candidates. 

Net  price,  postpaid :  in  cloth  binding,  40  cents  ;  in  paper,  25 
cents. 

"  It  would  be  a  good  plan  for  every  one  who  knows  of  a  young  friend  at 
home  in  whose  mind  the  question  of  entering-  the  army  of  foreign  workers  is  a 
live  one  to  see  that  a  copy  of  this  booklet  is  put  in  his  way." — The  Chinese 
Recorder. 

A  Geography  and  Atlas  of  Protestant  Missions.  By  Harlan  P. 
Beach,  M.A.,  F.A.G.S,  Two  volumes,  cloth  bound;  net 
price,  postpaid,  $4.00  per  set. 

A  distinct  mission  land  is  presented  in  each  chapter.  There  is  given  a 
vivid  picture  of  its  geography  and  its  races,  its  social  and  religious  condition 
as  unaffected  by  Christian  missions,  as  well  as  an  account  of  the  Protestant 
mission  work  as  it  is  being  carried  on  in  the  opening  years  of  the  twentieth 
century.  The  statistical  tables,  not  yet  from  the  press,  will  present  the  latest  and 
most  detailed  missionary  statistics  of  the  missionary  societies  of  Canada, 
United  States,  Great  Britain  and  the  Continent.  The  station  index  shows  the 
missionary  force  and  work  in  nearly  five  thousand  stations.  The  maps,  on 
which  are  marked  the  stations  of  all  societies,  are  artistically  and  geograph- 
ically correct,  having  been  prepared  for  the  work  by  well  known  British  car- 
tographers. 

Effective  Workers  In  Needy  Fields.  By  W.  F.  McDowell,  D.D., 
R.  P.  MacKay,  D.D.,  W.  F.  Oldham,  D.D.,  C.  C.  Creegan, 
D.D.,  and  J.  D.  Davis,  D.D.  Bibliography,  analj^ical  index, 
portraits,  illustrations.  i2mo,  195  pp. ;  paper,  35  cents  ;  cloth, 
50  cents. 

This  book  contains  the  record  of  five  remarkable  lives,  all  of  them,  with  the 
exception  of  the  first,  written  by  persons  who  were  intimately  acquainted  with 
the  life  whicn  they  so  admirably  portray.  The  reader  is  brought  into  a  sym- 
pathetic knowledge  of  the  lives  and  works  of  these  modern  missionaries: 
David  Livingstone,  Africa ;  George  Leslie  Mackay,  Formosa ;  Isabella  Tho- 
burn,  India;  Cyrus  Hamlin,  Turkey,  and  Joseph  Hardy  Neesima,  Japan. 

Introduction  to  the  Study  of  Foreign  Missions.  By  Edward  A. 
Lawrence,  D.D.  Being  Chapters  I.,  II.,  VII.,  VIII.,  IX.  of 
"Modem  Missions  in  the  East."  lamo,  143  pp.;  paper,  25 
cents  ;  cloth,  40  cents. 

It  contains  a  striking  historical  survey,  which  is  followed  by  an  exceedingly 
valuable  discussion  of  the  aim,  scope,  motives,  etc.,  underlying  the  missionary 
enterprise.  Then  come  chapters  on  the  various  forms  of  missionary  effort, 
the  missionary  on  the  field  in  his  various  relations,  and  the  problems  that  con- 
front him.  Such  a  course  is  the  best  sort  of  preparative  for  those  who  are 
about  to  begin  the  study  of  missions  and  also  will  be  of  the  utmost  value  as 
the  student  takes  up,  later  in  the  year,  a  survey  of  the  world. 

STUDENT  VOLUNTEER  MOVEMENT 
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BOOKS  FOR  MISSION  STUDY 

The  Evangelization  of  tbe  World  in  This  Generation.    By  John  R. 

Mott.    Bibliography,  analytical  index.    i2mo,  245  pp. ;  paper, 

35  cents  ;  cloth  decorated,  gilt  top,  $1.00. 

It  is  strong,  graphic,  and  full  of  fire. — Epiuorth  Herald. 

It  is  stimulating,  lucid,  and  convincing,  addressing  itself,  not  to  the 
emotions,  but  to  tne  judgment,  yet  so  spiritual  in  tone  and  purpose  that  it 
encourages  and  inspires  the  reader. —  The  Sunday  School  Times. 

This  is  a  book  to  stimulate  zeal  for  the  mission  cause. —  The  Moravian. 

The  book  is  doubly  worth  the  reading,  both  for  its  moving  appeal  to  the 
universal  Christian  consciousness  and  for  the  timely  information  it  gives  as  to 
the  grand  sweep  of  modern  missionary  thought  and  effort,  the  wide-reaching 
activities  of  the  present,  and  the  marvelous  opportunities  of  the  future. —  Tht 
Christian  Advocate. 

Nothing  better  can  be  found  to  give,  in  brief  and  compendious  review,  a 
summary  of  the  missionary  outlook  of  the  church  at  the  present  hour. — Rev. 
James  S.  Dennis,  D.D.,  in  The  Churchman. 

We  earnestly  commend  this  work  to  the  attention  of  ministers  and  students, 
and  of  all  who  are  interested  in  the  missionary  enterprise. — Free  Church  oj 
Scotland  Monthly. 

Strategic  Points  in  ttie  World's  Conquest:  the  Universities  and 
Colleges  as  related  to  Christian  Progress.  By  John  R.  Mott. 
Map.      i2mo,  218  pp.;  cloth  decorated,  gilt  top,  85  cents. 

A  report  of  Mr.  Mott's  observations  during  his  twenty  months'  tour  around 
the  world,  in  the  course  of  which  he  visited  practically  all  the  colleges  and 
universities,  bringing  most  of  them  into  affiliation  with  the  World's  Student 
Christian  Federation.  The  Federation  is  the  last  tidemark  of  enlightened 
scholarship  ;  it  is  no  empty  name  which  Mr.  Mott  uses  for  his  book  ;  he 
merely  translates  into  four  words  the  meaning  of  a  movement  to  wed  religion 
to  our  schools,  to  confirm  the  connection  between  virtue  and  intelligence,  to 
garner  the  treasures  of  wisdom  and  piety. —  The  Evangelist. 

New  Testament  Studies  in  Missions,  being  outline  studies  covering 
the  missionary  teachings  of  the  four  Gospels  and  Acts  and 
the  Pauline  Epistles.  By  Harlan  P.  Beach.  i2mo,  80  pp.; 
interleaved  for  additional  references  and  MS.  notes,  outline 
map;  paper,  15  cents. 

An  intelligent  use  of  this  book  cannot  fail  to  deepen  interest  in  missions, 
and  lead  to  efficient  methods  of  work. — New  York  Observer. 

It   is   full  of  good  things  for  those  who    use    it  wisely. —Journal   and 

Messenger. 

Tbe  Healing  of  the  Nations:  a  Treatise  on  Medical  Missions, 
Statement  and  Appeal.  By  J.  Rutter  Williamson,  M.B. 
Edinburgh  University.  Member  of  the  British  Medical  Asso- 
ciation. Bibliography.  i2mo,  95  pp.  ;  paper,  25  cents  ; 
cloth,  40  cents. 

The  appeal  made  by  the  awful  sufferings  endured  in  the  absence  of  medical 
relief  is  made  intense  by  the  facts  here  put  before  us,  and  the  success  of  the 
medical  missionary  as  a  pathbreaker  for  Christ  through  the  jungles  of  super- 
stition and  prejudice  is  put  beyond  a  doubt. —  The  Outlook. 

This  is  a  little  volume  overflowing  with  important  truth. —  The  Living 
Jturch. 

While  the  argument  is  strong  and  convincing,  the  devotional  spirit  that 
pervades  the  whole  is  warm  and  evincing. — Presbyterian  Review. 

STUDENT  VOLUNTEER  MOVEMENT 
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BOOKS  FOR  MISSION  STUDY 

DavB  on  the  HHIs  of  T'ang:  or  Missions  in  China.  By  Harlan  P. 
Beach.  Bibliography,  analytical  index,  missionary  map, 
statistics,  and  outline  scheme  for  studying  missions  of  any 
Mission  Board  in  China.  i2mo,  i8i  pp.;  paper,  35  cents; 
cloth,  50  cents. 

This  hand-book  vividly  describes  the  land,  people  and  religions  of  China, 
and  gives  an  interesting  account  of  missionary  operations  in  the  Empire. 

It  is  a  terse,  compact  and  serviceable  manual  about  missions  in  China. —  The 
Congrcgationalist, 

It  is  a  valuable  treasury  of  information  in  itself,  and,  if  desired,  can  be 
made  the  basis  of  minute  and  extended  study. —  The  Christian  Advocate. 

Furnished  with  a  good  map  and  well  indexed,  it  is  a  very  handy  referenc* 
manual. —  The  Outlook. 

Mr.  Beach  has  done  his  work  with  characteristic  thoroughness;  his  authori- 
ties are  most  trustworthy.— Arthur  H.  Smith,  in  the  Chinese  Recorder. 

Japan  and  Its  Regeneration.  By  Rev.  Otis  Gary.  Bibliography, 
statistics,  index,  and  missionary  map.  i2mo,  137  pp.; 
paper,  35  cents  ;  cloth,  50  cents. 

Written  by  a  Japanese  missionary  of  long  standingand  rare  discrimination, 
it  presents  in  compact  form  Japan's  past  and  present  history,  her  people  and 
religions,  and  the  work  of  missions  in  that  Empire.  It  is  lucid,  trustworthy, 
and  certain  to  interest  every  friend  of  missions  and  all  students  of  contem- 
porary history.— y<j/a«  Evangelist. 

A  better  manual  upon  the  Japanese  Empire  and  its  evangelization  couk 
scarcely  be  produced. — Church  Missionary  Intelligencer. 

A  compact,  comprehensive,  and  excellent  summary  of  what  is  most  necej 
sary  to  disseminate  in  the  way  of  information  about  the  coxxairy. — Co ngrega- 
tionalist. 

Protestant  Missions  in  South  America.  By  Rev.  Harlan  P.  Beach, 
Canon  F.  P.  L.  Josa,  Professor  J.  Taylor  Hamilton,  Rev. 
H.  C.  Tucker,  Rev.  C.  W.  Drees,  D.D.;  Rev.  I.  H.  LaFetra, 
Rev.  Thomas  B.  Wood,  LL.D.,  and  Mrs.  T.  S.  Pond.  Bibli- 
ography, missionary  map,  analytical  index,  general  and 
missionary  statistics.  i2ino,  230  pp.;  paper,  35  cents  ;  cloth, 
50  cents. 

The  only  volume  describing  the  work  of  all  Protestant  Missionary  societies 
laboring  in  the  "  Neglected  Continent."  Having  been  written  by  recognized 
authorities  in  different  sections  of  the  continent,  it  meets  an  urgent  need. 

The  reading  or  study  of  this  volume  and  its  accompanying  tables  of  general 
and  missionary  statistics,  together  with  its  missionary  map,  will  surely  produce 
strong  convictions  as  to  Protestantism's  debt  to  this  promising  continent  of 
republics. —  The  Intercollegian. 

Africa  Waiting;  or  The  Problem  of  Africa's  Evangelization. 
By  Douglas  M.  Thornton.  Bibliography,  missionary  statis- 
tics, and  map.     i2mo,  148  pp.;  paper,  35  cents. 

The  only  comprehensive  and  recent  book  of  small  compass  concerning  tht 
people  and  missions  of  Africa. 

It  takes  a  wide  range— geography,  languages  and  races  ;  the  special  prob- 
lems of  each  of  the  four  great  sections  of  the  Dark  Continent  ;  the  slave  trade 
aud  the  drink  traffic. —  The  Sunday  School  Times. 

STUDENT  VOLUNTEER  MOVEMENT 
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